‘Tbilisi’s Reaction on UN Resolution for Internal Consumption’

Tbilisi’s reaction on the UN Security Council resolution on Abkhazia was “inappropriate,” Kristian Bzhania, the Abkhaz leaders’ spokesperson, said.

President Saakashvili hailed the resolution as a “diplomatic breakthrough” for Georgia, citing a provision in the resolution which calls for the return of displaced people and for the respect of their property rights.
 
The Georgian authorities claimed the provision was “historic” as it was the first time the UN had acknowledged the property rights of Abkhaz IDPs.

Bzhania suggested that Tbilisi’s “inappropriate response” was an attempt to divert public attention away from current internal political problems onto an illusive international success.

He then highlighted the provisions of the resolution which, he thought, benefited the Abkhaz side. In particular the resolution calls on the Georgian side to ensure that the situation in the Tbilisi-controlled upper Kodori Gorge of Abkhazia was in line with the 1994 Moscow Ceasefire Agreement, especially in relation to the separation of forces.

“This means only one thing: Georgia has to withdraw its forces from this region [upper Kodori Gorge],” Apsnipress news agency quoted Bzhania as saying.

The resolution also calls on Sokhumi “to exercise restraint in connection with the Georgian commitments with regard to the Kodori valley.”

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