Moscow plans to build a permanent naval base on the Black Sea coast in the breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia, Politico informs.
An agreement between Abkhazia and Russia has already been signed and the new base will appear in the Ochamchira district “in the near future,” according to pro-Moscow leader Aslan Bzhania.
All this is aimed at increasing the level of defence capability of both Russia and Abkhazia, and this kind of cooperation will continue, because it ensures the fundamental interests of both Abkhazia and Russia, and security is above all. There are also things I can’t talk about.
Reports of the new naval base came a day after the Wall Street Journal reported that the Kremlin had withdrawn most of its Black Sea Fleet from its main base in Crimea. Citing Western officials and satellite images, the newspaper informed that Russia moved its ships from Sevastopol, which had been hit by Ukrainian missiles, to other ports.
Abkhazia, like South Ossetia, is considered a breakaway region of Georgia that Moscow unilaterally recognised as an independent state in 2008 after a brief war in which Russian troops claimed nearly 20 per cent of Georgia’s territory.
Despite the commitments as an ally of Russia, Abkhazia rejects the idea of joining the country, insisting on retaining its sovereignty.
