Abkhaz, Georgian Officials Meet in Sweden
News of a meeting between Georgian and Abkhaz officials in Sweden broke on June 19, when the EU’s foreign policy chief’s press office issued a press release after a meeting between Solana and President Saakashvili in Brussels.
“Mr. Solana welcomed the recent direct talks in Sweden between Georgian officials and Abkhaz representatives and he underlined the importance on maintaining the direct dialogue between Tbilisi and Sukhumi,” the press release received by Civil.Ge, via e-mail subscription, late on June 19 reads.
However, there is no mention of the Swedish meeting in a press release on the Saakashvili-Solana talks posted on the Council of European Union website. It was not immediately possible to clarify the reason behind the discrepancy between the two press releases with Solana’s press office.
A source from the Georgian authorities told Civil.Ge that Temur Iakobashvili, the Georgian state minister for reintegration, participated in the meeting. It was not possible to contact the minister and his office said they were not in a position to provide an official comment.
The Foreign Ministry has also declined to comment. Several senior lawmakers from the ruling party have said they were unaware that a meeting between the Georgian and Abkhaz sides had taken place.
No other details, even when the meeting took place, are available.
President Saakashvili met the EU’s foreign policy chief on June 19. Solana’s press office also reported that during the meeting President Saakashvili had discussed his June 6 meeting with his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, in St. Petersburg.
“Mr. Solana reiterated the willingness of the EU to enhance its engagement in order to help to broker a resolution to the current situation,” the EU foreign policy chief’s press office said in the press release.
On June 20 Saakashvili met with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer in Brussels.
Meanwhile, the Abkhaz news agency, Apsnipress, reported that Abkhaz leader Sergey Bagapsh had left for a two-day visit to Paris on June 19. According to the report the Abkhaz leader planned talks with “French political and business circles,” as well as journalists.
