Tbilisi condemns Bichvinta holiday area transfer in occupied Abkhazia to Russia

The Georgian foreign office on Wednesday denounced the recent move by Abkhaz de facto authorities in the country’s currently Russian-controlled Abkhazia region to transfer the so-called Bichvinta holiday area to Russia, labeling the ratification of the deal as an “illegal act”. The body stressed any such agreement, under the current conditions of Abkhazia’s occupation, held no legal weight and is considered “null and void” in the eyes of international law. 

The Ministry urged the international community to “properly assess” what it perceived as “another blatant violation” of Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity by Russia.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs calls on Russia to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia and fulfill its international obligations, including the cease-fire agreement of August 12, 2008, brokered by the European Union,” the statement said. 

The agreement in question, ratified by the so-called Parliament of occupied Abkhazia and signed by the de facto president, grants ownership of all structures within the Bichvinta holiday area to the Russian Federal Protection Service. Furthermore, it transfers the surrounding 186-hectare land to Russia on a 49-year lease.