Russia’s “illegal move” to establish base in occupied Abkhazia is “direct threat” to Georgia, Black Sea security - President

Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili on Friday said Russia’s “illegal move” to establish a permanent naval military base in the Russian-occupied north-western Abkhazia region’s city of Ochamchire was a “direct threat” to Georgia, its European aspirations, as well as to the Black Sea security.

Zourabichvili’s comments followed the reports of Aslan Bzhania, the de facto President of the Abkhazia region, who on Thursday told the Russian media he had signed a “new agreement” with the Kremlin over the deployment of the permanent naval base in the city of Ochamchire in the “near future”.

The President said Russia was “trying to strengthen” its influence in the Black Sea region with this step, and called on the international community to “firmly react, condemning this blatant provocation”.

Russia’s illegal move to establish a permanent naval military base in Ochamchire,????????'s sovereign territory, constitutes a direct threat to ????????,
our ???????? aspirations & the #BlackSea security

I call on the international community to firmly react, condemning this blatant provocation

— Salome Zourabichvili (@Zourabichvili_S) October 6, 2023