Georgian PM confirms 'fuel was supplied to occupied Abkhazia from Tbilisi-controlled territory'
Fuel supplies to Abkhazia
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze confirmed that petrol had been supplied from Tbilisi-controlled territory amid a severe fuel shortage in occupied Abkhazia. A journalist asked Kobakhidze about the issue.
Occupied Abkhazia has recently faced a severe fuel shortage, leading to significant restrictions on supplies of petrol and other petroleum products.
“We did not introduce this; it was introduced by private businesses,” Kobakhidze said at a briefing. He added that such measures were being taken in line with Georgia’s existing legislation, including the Law on Occupied Territories.
He said the Georgian government was ready to help ease the situation for people living in occupied Abkhazia where possible.
“If we can ease the situation, including for the population living in Abkhazia, we will do so, but we will act within the framework of the Law on Occupied Territories,” Kobakhidze said.
Kobakhidze also referred to the government’s “A Step to a Better Future” programme. According to him, it provides support for people living in the occupied territories, including the Abkhaz population.
Comment
Opposition Coalition for Change leader Nika Gvaramia reacted to Kobakhidze’s statement and called on the government to provide further clarification.
Gvaramia noted that Georgia’s Law on Occupied Territories generally prohibits direct unauthorised economic activity in Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region, although it provides certain exceptions, including for activities carried out for humanitarian purposes.
Gvaramia suggested that the fuel supplies in this case could have been intended for Russia’s “war machine”.
Nika Gvaramia: “We are dealing with an action that was presumably authorised by the government in advance. However, the public has not been told the grounds for such authorisation, or when and why it was issued.
“Given that:
— the Russian military machine is facing a severe fuel shortage, while Russian military bases are located in occupied Abkhazia;
— the Ivanishvili regime has repeatedly and deliberately stressed the need for cooperation with Russia;
— taking into account Georgia’s security and territorial integrity interests, as well as Western sanctions imposed on Russia, fuel supplies to territory controlled by Russia cannot be justified on legitimate humanitarian or socio-economic grounds,
“it becomes clear that the Ivanishvili regime has effectively acknowledged that, with its authorisation — and, in essence, by the regime itself — an action is being carried out that runs counter to Georgia’s sovereign interests. It:
- violates Georgia’s Constitution;
- violates Western sanctions imposed on Russia;
- is aimed at assisting the Russian military machine by supplying strategically important products.”
Fuel supplies to Abkhazia
