Foreign Minister Rules Out Offensive in Abkhazia

Georgian Foreign Minister Gela Bezhuashvili denied that the Georgian Defense Ministry has dispatched its troops to Kodori gorge and ruled out the use of force on a territory which is currently controlled by the Abkhaz secessionist authorities.

He said that only the Interior Ministry?s forces are deployed near the Kodori gorge, where rebel warlord Emzar Kvitsiani and his paramilitary group is based.

?I want to categorically rule out any military operation [in the Kodori gorge]… I also want to categorically rule out any actions on the territory that is controlled by the so-called Abkhaz authorities,? the Georgian Foreign Minister said at a special news briefing on July 25.

He also denied reports that Defense Minister Irakli Okruashvili is in Kodori, although he confirmed that Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili is there.

Gela Bezhuashvili called on Emzar Kvitsiani and his rebel militias to surrender their arms and observe the law.
 
?Naturally, the authorities will prevent chaos and illegality, and will use police units to restore order if necessary,? he said.

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