Sergey Shamba: Abkhazia's Goal is Clear - Build and Strengthen Our State
Sergey Shamba, Secretary of the Security Council of Abkhazia.
SUKHUM / AQW'A ― In response to Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze's recent declaration envisioning a Georgia, together with Abkhazians and Ossetians, aspiring for EU membership by 2030, Sergey Shamba, Secretary of the Security Council of Abkhazia, told TASS news agency that Abkhazia's primary objective is the development and strengthening of its sovereignty.
"Georgia's desire to reclaim Abkhazia and South Ossetia surprises no one, yet Abkhazia's task is to develop and strengthen its statehood." This was the comment made by Secretary of the Security Council of Abkhazia, Sergey Shamba, in response to the statement by Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, who said that Georgia plans to reintegrate Abkhazia and South Ossetia and become a member of the European Union by 2030.
Georgian PM Irakli Kobakhidze's message on X.com during Georgia's Independence Day celebrations.
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Commenting on Kobakhidze's statements, Sergey Shamba said, "They have aimed to reclaim us for 30 years and will likely continue for another 300. This surprises no one. It’s their foreign policy objective, and we are well aware of it. Abkhazia, on the other hand, has its own goals: to establish an independent state and to develop and strengthen its sovereignty."
According to the Secretary of the Security Council, there are "many unresolved issues" between Abkhazia and Georgia. "When the time comes, we will discuss them. For now, we do not see such readiness, and we are not going to discuss questions of confederation or any other relations with this state," he said. Shamba recalled that on the eve of the Georgian-Abkhazian war in 1992, Abkhaz politician Taras Shamba proposed a draft agreement for a confederative model of relations, but on the day it was to be discussed in the Abkhaz parliament, the war began. "Much has changed since then, and now it’s out of the question," Shamba emphasised.
He also noted that in 2008, on the eve of recognising Abkhazia's independence, Russia tried to propose confederative relations with Georgia, but the republic's authorities rejected this. "We wish Georgia stability and security. They follow their path, and we follow ours," concluded the politician.
You can read our statement on the confederation discussions made on X.com on May 18th.
The 'Confederative model' was a proposal made by Abkhazia to Georgia right at the beginning of the war initiated by Georgia in 1992, and even after the war [See FBIS Reports on 21 April 1994 and 29 January 1996] Georgia never considered this proposal, and subsequently, Abkhazia formally declared its independence in 1999.