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Abkhazia–Russia border

Coordinates: 43°23′19″N 41°09′19″E / 43.388541°N 41.155232°E / 43.388541; 41.155232
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43°23′19″N 41°09′19″E / 43.388541°N 41.155232°E / 43.388541; 41.155232

Russia has a 255.4 kilometres (158.7 mi) border with Abkhazia, a breakaway region of Georgia, while the border itself is "guarded" by FSB Border Service of Russia and State Security Service of Abkhazia.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Notably, there was a dispute between the two parties[which?] over a tract of land 160 square kilometres (62 sq mi)[9] in size near the resort town of Krasnaya Polyana that flared in the lead-up to the Sochi Olympics.[10][11][12][13][14] The dispute has since been dropped.[15] Georgia considers any attempt to demarcate a boundary between the breakaway region and Russia as illigetimate.[16]

Particular is the Psou river that runs between the Abkhaz-Russian border which is vital for legal economic activity[17] while nefarious actors use it as a smuggling route for illegal goods.[18]

History[edit]

During the War in Abkhazia (1992–1993) when fighting had began the 221km Abkhazian section of the railway extending from Psou roadside stop (Abkhazia-Russia border) up to Ingur roadside stop (Abkhazia-Georgia border) has been closed for Armenia and Georgia since Aug 14 1992 after the railway bridge over the River of Ingur (dividing Georgia from Abkhazia) was detonated.[19] and later on in October 6, 1992 the Abkhaz forces captured Gagra and reached the Russian border shortly thereafter.[20][21]

On September 19, 1994 the Russian Federation had closed it's border with Abkhazia and later on December 19th it would close the border along the psou river.[22][23][24][25]

On August 30, 1995 Abkhazia's major port city of Sukhumi was closed due to unspecified reasons.[26]

The Russian Federation had ordered that all shipping to Sukhumi was to be closed again on January 5 1996,[27] which explains why an incident took place on March 1996 where a Turkish ship was prevented from entering into the port of Sukhumi.[28] Meanwhile, Russia had joined an CIS blockade that isolated Abkhazia from economic activity.[29]

In c. 1999 then president Vladimir Putin had abrogated by decree the Russian commitment to uphold the embargo, canceling most restrictions on crossing the Psou River.[30]

In c. 2000 the Russian Federation had "relaxed" it's border controls to "allow" men of fighting age, presumably because of the Second Chechen War.[31]

In c. 2005 the Russian Federation unilaterally reopened the Psou-Sokhumi section for both civilian and military transport.[32]

In 2006, the Psou-border was opened to all possessing appropriate documentation,[33][34] and on June of that year the Russian Federation provided 200,000 tons of bitumen to assist road construction, the Sukhumi-Psou rehabilitation - at least 99 million roubles ($3.8million) was also financed by the Moscow government.[35][36] Later on July, Russia delivered ammunition, automatic rifles, grenade launchers, bombs, and mines; that equipment was transported into Abkhazia by some thirty-five to forty military trucks that crossed the Psou River from the Russian side.[37]

On January 24, 2011 it was reported that Russia had financed repairs on the Abkhaz Railway which would span over three months and reconstruction would cover railway sections from the river Psou on the Russian border to Sokhumi.[38]

On Apri 8-20, 2020 then acting President of Abkhazia Valeri Bganba had signed an order to close the entire state border with Russia along the Psou River, presumably because of COVID-19 pandemic.[39]

During the XXVII St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 5-8 2024, both sides stated that they would work together in order to "simplify" border controls.[40]

References[edit]

  1. ^ ""Border" Checkpoints in the Occupied Region of Abkhazia: Anatomy of the Movement on the Occupation Line". kremlin-roadmap.gfsis.org.ge. 24 November 2022.
  2. ^ "Comment by the Information and Press Department on Abkhazian Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Chirikba's visit to Russia". www.mid.ru. 9 March 2015.
  3. ^ "Abkhazia has strengthened border control with Georgia and Russia". detq.info. 25 June 2023.
  4. ^ "Black Sea Port Is Flash Point for Georgia and Russia". www.nytimes.com. 9 September 2009.
  5. ^ "Transcript of Remarks and Replies to Questions by Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov at a Meeting with the Faculty and Students of the Abkhazian State University and Members of the Public of Abkhazia, Sukhum, October 2, 2009". www.mid.ru. 3 October 2009.
  6. ^ "Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Conflict in Georgia" (PDF). www.mpil.de. 21 September 2009.
  7. ^ Wojciech Górecki (10 March 2015). "Abkhazia's 'creeping' incorporation; The end of the experiment of a separatist democracy" (PDF). www.osw.waw.pl.
  8. ^ Aslanbek Mirzoev (30 September 2022). "Volunteer-movement and the Circassian factor during the Patriotic War of the people of Abkhazia in 1992-1993 – historical and political significance". abkhazworld.com.
  9. ^ "Leader of separatist Abkhazia dies". www.osw.waw.pl. 1 June 2011.
  10. ^ Souleimanov, Emil (May 11, 2011). "Russia and Abkhazia Dispute Border Delimitation". Central Asia-Caucus Institute.
  11. ^ "Abkhazia: Not Quite So Frozen in Time". civil.ge. 14 February 2014.
  12. ^ "Abkhazia: Hopes Placed on the "Olympic Effect"". unpo.org. 6 July 2007.
  13. ^ Nikoloz Samkharadze (August 2012). "Georgian State Border – Past and Present" (PDF). css.ge.
  14. ^ George Hewitt (13 July 2012). "Abkhazia, from conflict to statehood". www.opendemocracy.net.
  15. ^ "Abkhazia: The Long Road to Reconciliation" (PDF). International Crisis Group. No. Europe Report N°224. April 10, 2013. p. 10.
  16. ^ Kupunia, Mzia (March 21, 2011). "Tbilisi slams "border demarcation" meeting planned in Moscow". The Messenger Online.
  17. ^ "Abkhazia; The Long Road to Reconciliation" (PDF). is.muni.cz. 10 April 2013.
  18. ^ "SMUGGLINGTHROUGH ABKHAZIA; AND TSKHINVALI REGION OF GEORGIA" (PDF). traccc.gmu.edu. 2004. ISBN 99928-0-830-6.
  19. ^ "Views from Moscow: Russian-Abkhazian treaty shot down project of railway to Armenia via Abkhazia and Georgia". arminfo.info. 26 November 2014.
  20. ^ Verlag Barbara Budrich (2015). ""Frozen conflicts" in Europe". www.jstor.org.
  21. ^ "Changes on the Western Front: how Gagra was liberated". abkhazworld.com. 3 October 2020.
  22. ^ Edward Mihalkanin. "Russia, Georgia, and Abkhazia" (PDF). abkhazworld.com.
  23. ^ "THE DE-ISOLATION OF ABKHAZIA" (PDF). www.international-alert.org. April 2011.
  24. ^ Ekaterina Kosiuk (March 2023). "Could a De Facto State Survive without External Help? The Case of Abkhazia" (PDF). www.researchgate.net. doi:10.32566/ah.2023.1.1.
  25. ^ Sergey Markedonov (20 December 2018). "Russia and the conflicts in the South Caucasus". wp-g.pages.dev.
  26. ^ Edward Mihalkanin. "Russia, Georgia, and Abkhazia" (PDF). abkhazworld.com.
  27. ^ Edward Mihalkanin. "Russia, Georgia, and Abkhazia" (PDF). abkhazworld.com.
  28. ^ "The Blockade of Abkhazia". abkhazworld.com. 20 July 2020.
  29. ^ "Navigating de facto statehood: trade, trust, and agency in Abkhazia's external economic relations" (PDF). www.nupi.no. 7 December 2020. doi:10.1080/15387216.2020.1861957.
  30. ^ Giulia Prelz Oltramonti. "Borders, De Facto Borders and Mobility; Policies in Conflict Transformation" (PDF). www.transcript-open.de.
  31. ^ Georgi M. Derluguian (January 2001). "THE FORGOTTEN AKBHAZIA" (PDF). csis-website-prod.s3.amazonaws.com.
  32. ^ Vladimir Socor (3 June 2008). "RUSSIA DEPLOYS RAILWAY TROOPS TO ABKHAZIA". jamestown.org.
  33. ^ George Hewitt (2009). "Abkhazia and Georgia; Time for a Reassessment". repository.library.brown.edu.
  34. ^ George Hewitt (4 October 2013). "Why Independence for Abkhazia Is the Best Solution". www.tppra.org.
  35. ^ "ABKHAZIA TODAY; Europe Report N°176 – 15 September 2006" (PDF). www.files.ethz.ch. 15 September 2006.
  36. ^ "ABKHAZIA WAYS FORWARD; Europe Report N°179 – 18 January 2007" (PDF). www.crisisgroup.org. 18 January 2007.
  37. ^ "CASE OF MAMASAKHLISI AND OTHERS v. GEORGIA AND RUSSIA". hudoc.echr.coe.int. 7 March 2023.
  38. ^ "Abkhazia: Russia to Repair Abkhaz Railway". unpo.org. 25 January 2011.
  39. ^ "Abkhazia closes border with Russia". uawire.org. 8 April 2020.
  40. ^ "Aslan Bzhania: Russia and Abkhazia are working on simplifying border control - I hope we will reach such a history of relations when the checkpoint will no longer be needed". www.interpressnews.ge. 9 June 2024.


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