Foreign office slams transfer of territory in occupied Abkhazia to Russia as “another illegal act”

The Georgian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday condemned the ratification of the transfer to Russia of Bichvinta holiday retreat in the country’s Russian-occupied Abkhazia region by the de facto parliament of the regime as “another illegal act” recorded as part of the occupation. 

The foreign office said the development was a “continuation of the policy of occupation” of “indivisible” regions of Georgia by Russia, which it said “grossly violates the fundamental principles of international law”.

From the international legal point of view, any such so-called agreement has no legal force and is void. Accordingly, under the conditions of the occupation of the Abkhazia region, the so-called agreement cannot have any legal effect”, the Ministry said. 

The Ministry appealed to the international community to “properly assess” the illegal step by the Russian Government, which it said was aimed at “encroaching on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia”.

The transfer grants ownership on all construction on the territory of the Bichvinta holiday area to the Russian Federal Protection Service, with the surrounding 186-hectare land transferred to Russia on a 49-year lease.

The Ministry’s statement also called on Russia to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country and fulfil its international obligations, including the 2008 EU-mediated ceasefire agreement following the war between the two countries that required the former to withdraw its troops to pre-war borders.