Russia’s “illegal move” to establish base in occupied Abkhazia is “direct threat” to Georgia, Black Sea security - President
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”. Photo via Presidential Administration
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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 ????????,
— Salome Zourabichvili (@Zourabichvili_S) October 6, 2023
our ???????? aspirations & the #BlackSea security
I call on the international community to firmly react, condemning this blatant provocation
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Thursday called Russia’s plans a “continuation” of the occupation and an “illegal decision”.
The Georgian Foreign Ministry also said on Thursday it was “concerned” by Moscow’s plans to deploy a permanent military base and called on Russia to act “in accordance with international obligations” and the ceasefire agreement signed with Tbilisi following the 2008 conflict between the countries and withdraw its troops from the Georgian occupied regions.
On Friday, Peter Stano, the European Union Spokesperson for External Affairs also expressed the European Union’s “strong concern” in this regard and Paweł Herczyński, the Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia, called the decision “extremely worrying”.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Thursday called Russia’s plans to deploy a permanent naval military base in the Russian-occupied north-western Abkhazia region’s city of Ochamchire - a continuation of the occupation.
The Georgian foreign office on Thursday said it was “concerned” by Moscow’s plans to deploy a permanent naval military base in the Russian-occupied north-western Abkhazia region’s city of Ochamchire.
Gia Volski, the Georgian Parliament’s Vice Speaker, on Thursday said there was “no formal deal” between Russia and Georgia’s Russian-occupied north-western region of Abkhazia following claims by the de facto President of the region of a “new agreement” with Moscow about the deployment of a Russian naval base in the coastal city of Ochamchire.
Paweł Herczyński, the Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia, on Friday said media reports about alleged plans for a Russian naval military base in Georgia’s Russian-occupied region of Abkhazia were “extremely worrying”.
Peter Stano, the European Union Spokesperson for External Affairs, on Friday said the bloc expressed “strong concern” about Russia’s reported plans to establish a naval military base in Georgia’s Russian-occupied region of Abkhazia.
Nikoloz Samkharadze, the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Georgian Parliament, on Tuesday said it was "important" for the international community and the country’s Western partners to condemn Russia’s reported plans to establish a naval military base in the city of Ochamchire in Georgia’s occupied region of Abkhazia.