“To the world, we’re all Russians” - an Abkhaz politician’s remark sparked backlash online
Is Abkhazia a vassal of Russia or a partner?
“For the global community, we’re all Russians.” This phrase by Alkhaz Barzania, head of one of Abkhazia’s pro-government parties, sparked outrage on social media, with the opposition calling it “a burst of sycophancy.”
The controversial remark was made by Barzania, acting chairman of the United Abkhazia party, during a roundtable discussion. His exact words were:
“Our fate is being decided in the territory of the Special Military Operation, and our guys who are honorably carrying our flag there – for the entire global community, we’re all Russians. That’s the reality we must recognize.”
Barzania likely phrased his comment poorly due to his lack of political public speaking experience. Until recently, he worked at Abkhazia’s embassy in Russia, where he had little need to carefully weigh his word
In May 2025, Barzania became acting chairman of United Abkhazia, succeeding veteran politician Sergey Shamba. Social media claims Barzania is Shamba’s nephew and inherited the post.
The opposition Telegram channel Respublika responded with sharp sarcasm, questioning “whether Belarusians, Georgians, Armenians, Kazakhs, and Azerbaijanis are also perceived globally as Russians, or if this applies only to Abkhazians.”
Respublika further criticized Barzania and his alleged uncle Shamba for “never setting foot in the war zone, where Abkhazians are dying fulfilling their allied duty.”
The channel emphasized that while Abkhazia is an ally of Russia, this does not make Abkhazians Russian.
“Such bursts of sycophancy do not inspire admiration but rather irritation in society, producing the opposite effect – as social media comments clearly show. People see the insincerity,” Respublika wrote.
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