15 May 2004, 17:14
Georgia has no plans of military invasion of Abkhazia
The Georgian authorities do not plan an armed invasion of Abkhazia and do their best to settle the Abkhazian problem in a peaceful way, Chief of the Georgian Defense Ministry's General Staff Givi Iukuridze told journalists on May 14. At the same time, he noted that actions in support of the reunification with Georgia already took place in Abkhazia. "They try to suppress this movement there, but they will fail," he said. As reported by the Abkhazian government, Abkhazian Defense Minister Vyacheslav Arshba addressed UN military observers with a statement.
Georgian special services are preparing destabilization in the Gali district of Abkhazia and inciting armed clashes, Vyacheslav Arshba said.
In his opinion, such actions may lead to the large-scale military confrontation between the parties. To remind, the Georgian president had stated earlier: "We need support of our friends and a position of principle, even more so when we have Abkhazia ahead."
By Mikhail Saakashvili's assessment, it is much more difficult to take Sukhumi under control again that it was in the case with Batumi since Abkhazia is almost de facto Russian territory with Russian passports and Russian rubles as a main currency.
Editors note: See also the article "Abkhazian leaders fear of provocations".
Source: RosBusinessConsulting News Agency
