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Belarusian lawmakers meet with Abkhazian leader

A delegation of Belarusian lawmakers met with Sergei Bagapsh, leader of Georgia’s breakaway region of Abkhazia, in the capital Sukhumi on November 19, BelaPAN said. 

Mr. Bagapsh emphasized friendly ties between the region and Belarus and praised Alyaksandr Lukashenka for his support of Abkhazia during the introduction of economic sanctions against the region.

Mr. Bagapsh stressed that the region “will hold dialogue with all who wish to talk to it,” according to the Abkhazian leader’s press office. “But we are not going to persuade anyone, make some demands that someone recognize our independence,” he was quoted as saying.

He acknowledged that the recognition of the region’s independence could be a tough task for a country and stressed that Abkhazia would maintain friendly relations with Belarus irrespective of its stance on the subject.

Mikhail Rusy, chairman of a standing committee in the Belarusian House of Representatives, thanked the Abkhazian leadership for allowing the delegation to see the “full picture” of what is going on in the region.

“We visited Abkhazia’s parliament, met with the speaker and committee heads of the People’s Assembly, had a very interesting and thorough conversation in the government,” he said, adding that the delegation had met with Abkhazia’s foreign and defense ministers.

The Belarusian delegation began its four-day trip that includes stays in Georgia, Abkhazia and Georgia’s other breakaway region, South Ossetia, on Tuesday.

The delegation, which consists of members of both the lower and upper chambers, was expected to hold meetings with lawmakers, government officials and ordinary people “to study public opinion, steps by the authorities to secure normal life in the regions.”

The trip is part of the Belarusian legislature’s effort to consider the recognition of the independence of the breakaway regions.

Earlier this month, the National Assembly formed a working group tasked with obtaining “additional information about the subject of the recognition of the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, as well as coming up with recommendations for the consideration of the issue by the House of Representatives.”

The House of Representatives received a recognition appeal from the parliament of South Ossetia on December 1, 2008 and a similar appeal from the legislature of Abkhazia a little earlier, but the House has not yet considered the issue.

Mr. Lukashenka said in September that the Belarusian parliament would consider recognizing the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia this fall.

Apart from Russia, Nicaragua and Venezuela are the only countries to have recognized the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which the rest of the world still views as part of Georgia.