12:09, 27 May 2004

Abkhazian PM: Abkhazia's reunification with Georgia 'is out of question'

Abkhazian Prime Minister Raul Khadzhimba has turned down the offer by Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili to reunite with Georgia, which the Georgian leader addressed to the Abkhazians and the Osetins.

"The reunification of Abkhazia with Georgia is out of the question," Mr Khadzhimba said on May 26. "Abkhazia has determined its status one and for all. The constitution of an independent state has been adopted in the republic, and the issue of Abkhazia's status cannot be and will not be a subject matter of the discussion," the Abkhazian premier emphasized.

Earlier the same day, while attending a military parade in Tbilisi to mark Georgia's Independence Day, Mikhail Saakashvili made an appeal to the Abkhazian side for peace and offered to start negotiating Abkhazia's status within Georgia.

"The dialogue with the Georgian side is possible only concerning further peaceful coexistence. So we need to devote ourselves to the process of restoring trust between the sides now," Abkhazian Foreign Minister Sergey Shamba said on May 26.

Editors note: See also the article "Georgian president urges Abkhazia, South Osetia to reunite".

Source: Interfax News Agency