Russian president: Russia remains first partner of Abkhazia

Russia remains the first partner for Abkhazia, said Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with the de-facto President of Russian-occupied Abkhazia Aslan Bzhania earlier today, reports Russian nesws agency TASS.

Now is the time to talk calmly about how our relations are developing. Unfortunately, the pandemic is affecting the economy, but of course Russia remains the number one partner for Abkhazia," Putin said.

Putin noted that more than 70 per cent of Abkhaz economic turnover is from Russia.

He expressed hope that Russian doctors will contribute to Abkhazia’s fight against the coronavirus.

The de-facto President of Russian-occupied Abkhazia Aslan Bzhania thanked Putin for help amid the pandemic.

I would like to express my gratitude on behalf of the multinational people of Abkhazia to the Russian people, to you personally, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, for the support and help that you have been rendering us over the years. We are grateful to you for this; you find out who your friends are in hard times. Recently, in the context of the pandemic, we once again felt this support,” Bzhania said.

Before that, Bzhania was in Moscow on a working visit on September 26 where he met Russian officials.