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Grigory Karasin:
Any force actions by Georgian troops in Kodori surely to be appropriately met
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin has condemned Georgia’s ‘military aggression’ in the Kodori Gorge and its plans to install the so-called Abkhaz government in exile in the region in an interview with Interfax on Tuesday.
"The deployment of Georgian troops in the Kodori Gorge is of course a very dangerous military action which may harm the Georgia-Abkhaz settlement," Grigory Karasin said.
"We understand well the idea to send the so-called Abkhaz government in exile to the region and we cannot treat it as anything other than a deliberate escalation of tensions in this volatile region," he said.
"We understand other ideas as well. Russia is very concerned, because of its peacekeepers deployed in the region and the dozens of thousands of Russian citizens living in Abkhazia. The region also borders on Russia," the deputy foreign minister said.
"That is why Russian society is concerned over the further deterioration of the situation and fully supports the firm position of Abkhaz President Sergei Bagapsh," Karasin said.
"Russia sees its role in assisting as much as it can in the search for a peaceful settlement and in guaranteeing the security of the residents of the region. Any other scenario linked to the use of force would be a dangerous exercise in cynicism and irresponsibility. And such attempts [scenarios] are likely to be met appropriately," the Russian high-ranking diplomat said.
Earlier, it was reported that a group of representatives of the Abkhaz government in exile headed by Malkhaz Akishbaya, the prime minister, arrived in the Kodori Gorge on Monday.
Abkhazia interpreted this step by Tbilisi as an intention to spare nothing to escalate the situation in the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict zone, Abkhaz Foreign Minister Sergei Shamba said on Monday.
There are more than 800 Georgian soldiers and police officers, including 350 experts from various branches of the arms forces, in the upper Kodori Gorge, the Abkhaz Defense ministry said.
According to the Moscow agreement on a ceasefire and separation of forces signed in 1994, no regular troops can be present in the region, and that is why Abkhazia demands their withdrawal. Sukhumi insists on monitoring the part of the gorge controlled by Georgia as well.
Abkhazia (Sukhumi) is a de jure province of Georgia that gained independence in the 1990s. Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili is trying to regain control over the breakaway province, while Sukhumi is working toward international recognition of its independence.
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