Delegation of de facto Abkhazia holds meetings in Syria
By Tea Mariamidze
Thursday, August 24
The so-called Foreign Ministry of Georgia’s Russian-occupied region of Abkhazia (Sokhumi) reports that a delegation headed by Foreign Minister Daur Kove visited the Syrian Arab Republic and held meetings with government officials.
The de facto Ministry says the delegation included so called cabinet members which held meetings with their Syrian “counterparts”.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Syrian Arab Republic hosted the meeting between Daur Kove, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Abkhazia, and Walid Al-Moallem, the Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers, as well as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Syrian Arab Republic,” the Abkhazian government reports.
The statement also reads that the officials expressed confidence in the need to establish and develop mutual relations in all areas of bilateral cooperation.
During the meeting, the parties also exchanged views on the current military and political situation in and around Syria.
“It was noted that the nation of Abkhazia and Syria both had to defend the right to free and the independent development of their countries,” the statement reads.
The so called ministry also stated that Daur Kove thanked the leadership of the Syrian Arab Republic for inviting the delegation to visit Syria as well as the opportunity to participate in the Damascus International Fair in which Abkhazia was represented by a separate pavilion.
“At the end of the meeting the parties once again confirmed their mutual desire to build full-fledged bilateral intergovernmental relations,” the statement reads.
Moreover, the Abkhazian side reports that their delegation met with Imad Khamis, the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Syrian Arab Republic.
“As noted, the Syrian leadership perceives the Republic of Abkhazia as a friendly state and intends to follow the path of establishing and developing bilateral intergovernmental relations. Guided by the directives of Syrian President Bashar Assad, the Syrian government intends to build full-scale relations with Syria's strategic partners, including the Republic of Abkhazia.”
The Abkhazian Foreign Ministry stated that the Syrian authorities expressed their interest in developing trade and economic cooperation with the Republic of Abkhazia.
“For these purposes, by order of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Syria the special government commission will be formed, which, together with Abkhazian colleagues, will develop the concept aimed at developing socio-economic and trade relations with the Republic of Abkhazia,” the statement reads.
The so-called ministry also said that the Abkhazian delegation was also hosted by Najat Anzur, the President of the Syrian National Council and by Mohammed Samer Khalil, the Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade of Syria.
The visit of the Abkhazian delegation to Syria concluded on August 22.
Russia recognized de facto Abkhazia as an independent state in August 2008, after a five-day armed conflict between Georgia and Russia. This year on the ninth anniversary of Georgia-Russia war, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Georgia’s breakaway region on August 8 promising further support to the de facto government. The international community unanimously condemned the action as violation of Georgia’s territorial integrity.
