Abkhazia

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Abkhazia

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | 2008 | The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Abkhazia , autonomous republic (1990 est. pop. 539,000), 3,300 sq mi (8,547 sq km), in Georgia, between the Black Sea and the Greater Caucasus. Sukhumi (the capital) and Gagra are the chief cities. Despite some perpetually snowcapped peaks, the region is mainly one of subtropical agriculture. Tobacco is the leading crop; there are also tea and citrus plantations, vineyards, and fruit orchards. Industries include sawmilling, canning, metalworking, and the manufacture of leather goods. Abkhazia is famous for its health resorts. The population is made up of Abkhazians (an Orthodox Christian and Muslim people of the North Caucasian linguistic family), Georgians, Russians, and Armenians.

Originally colonized in the 6th cent. BC by the Greeks, the region later came under Roman and Byzantine rule. In the 8th cent. a leader of the Abkhaz tribe formed an independent kingdom that became part of Georgia in the 10th cent. In 1578 the Turks conquered the area and gradually converted it to Islam. By a treaty with the Abkhazian dukes, Russia acquired Sukhumi in 1810 and declared a protectorate over all Abkhazia, which was formally annexed in 1864.

Abkhazia became an autonomous republic of the Soviet Union in 1921 and was made part of Georgia in 1930. In 1991 the region became an autonomous republic inside independent Georgia. Georgia itself was soon torn apart by bitter fighting between government forces and a guerrilla movement seeking an independent Abkhazian state. More than 3,000 people were killed in the fighting, and some 250,000 people, mostly ethnic Georgians, fled. In 1994 a cease-fire was negotiated, with Russian troops serving as peacekeepers, but the ultimate disposition of Abkhazia remained unresolved and fighting broke out again in 1998 and in 2001. In a 1999 referendum regarded as illegal by Georgia, voters approved declaring the region a sovereign state. The area is heavily dependent on Russia, and most of the residents now hold Russian passports.

After a presidential election in Oct., 2004, that apparently ended in a slim victory for opposition candidate Sergei Bagapsh, allegations of fraud from the Russian-supported runner-up, Prime Minister Raul Khajimba, resulted in a call for a new election, and a governmental impasse ensued. The issue was resolved when Bagapsh, who was widely believed to have won despite fraud on Khajimba's side, agreed to a new election (Jan., 2005) in which Khajimba was his running mate. Russia's failed attempt to manipulate a presidential victory for Khajimba, despite Bagapsh's own pro-Moscow leanings, was generally seen as a significant blunder.

In the aftermath of Georgia's attack on South Ossetia in Aug., 2008, and Russia's counterattack, Russia positioned additional troops in Abkhazia and for a time occupied some neighboring sections of Georgia. Abkhazian forces also seized the Kodori gorge, a region of Abkhazia that had remained under Georgian control, and subsequently Russia recognized Abkhazia as independent.

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Abkhazia

A Dictionary of Contemporary World History | 2004 | | © A Dictionary of Contemporary World History 2004, originally published by Oxford University Press 2004. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Abkhazia A Caucasian territory which was part of the Soviet Union as an Autonomous Soviet Republic within Georgia. In April 1991 it became part of the independent Republic of Georgia, against the will of the Muslim Abkhazian population (17.8 per cent of the total population) and its Russian minority (14.3 per cent). Helped by a contingent of Muslim volunteers from neighbouring autonomous Russian republics such as Chechnya, the rebels managed to repel the Georgian troops, weakened already by civil war. Georgia had to concede defeat, and negotiations focused on extensive autonomy for a territory over which Georgia had lost all control. Negotiations between the Abkhazian government and Georgia proved futile, and a fragile peace was supervised at the border by UN observers and Russian troops.

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CIS

A Dictionary of Contemporary World History | 2004 | | © A Dictionary of Contemporary World History 2004, originally published by Oxford University Press 2004. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) An international organization founded in 1991 to create a framework for regular consultation among the successor states of the Soviet Union. It was joined by twelve member states (excluding the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), though its 1993 charter for a common economic and foreign policy was not signed by three of them (Ukraine, Moldova, Turkmenistan). Chaired by the Russian President, Yeltsin, and his successor, Putin, the CIS was weakened by the frailty of the members' economic and political systems, as well as intense mistrust of Russia's overwhelming predominance in size and population. It was further weakened by Russia's own geopolitical interests, which in Georgia or Moldova was directed towards the destabilization of fellow CIS members.

Abkhazia

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

Free Article Head of Abkhazia region rejects settlement plan
News Wire article from: AP Online; 7/18/2008
Free Article Georgian region Abkhazia appeals for recognition of independence, citing Kosovo
News Wire article from: AP Worldstream; 3/7/2008
Free Article Head of breakaway Georgian region Abkhazia rejects international settlement proposal
News Wire article from: AP Worldstream; 7/18/2008

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Abkhazia, the country that doesn't exist, prepares to follow Kosovo's example
Newspaper article from: Belfast Telegraph; 3/21/2008; 700+ words ; "Welcome to Abkhazia," says a hirsute official, wearing...Enjoy your stay in our country." Abkhazia has a president, a flag, a national...backgammon. "Why is Kosovo any better than Abkhazia?" asked one. "It's exactly the...
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News Wire article from: Inter Press Service English News Wire; 11/10/2008; ; 700+ words ; ...English News Wire 11-10-2008 SOKHUMI, Abkhazia, Nov. 10, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Recent...a separate country has the people of Abkhazia beginning to see hopes of development...coast, is the only gateway that has kept Abkhazia connected to the rest of the world since...
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Magazine article from: The Economist (US); 7/5/2008; 700+ words ; ...prosperous future AT MIDDAY Ochamchira, in Abkhazia, is almost empty. A derelict cement...between Georgia and its breakaway enclave, Abkhazia, was one of many detonated by the collapse...accused Georgia of preparing a strike on Abkhazia, mobilised paratroopers and artillery...
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News Wire article from: Inter Press Service English News Wire; 7/17/1996; ; 700+ words ; ...disintegrating into its component parts, Abkhazia erupted. A republic within one of the...Georgia since. Now their time is up, and Abkhazia is still seething. Their final week...of keeping the peace. The conflict in Abkhazia is one of the most protracted and complicated...
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Magazine article from: Demokratizatsiya; 12/22/1998; ; 700+ words ; ...involvement of other non-Georgian groups of Abkhazia in the conflict, who took the Abkhazian...Black Sea coast, fertile and picturesque Abkhazia has been an important Transcaucasian...There were periods in their history when Abkhazia, as a separate principality, was under...
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News Wire article from: AP Online; 7/18/2008; ; 700+ words ; The president of Abkhazia on Friday rejected an international proposal...conditions for further talks. Sergei Bagapsh said Abkhazia would submit an alternative proposal and stressed that Abkhazia will not discuss any plans to settle the dispute...
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News Wire article from: AP Worldstream; 3/7/2008; ; 700+ words ; Abkhazia, the Russian-backed Black Sea region...Russia, which has developed close ties to Abkhazia and another rebel Georgian province...response to the move. But it encouraged Abkhazia's defiance by lifting trade sanctions...
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Head of breakaway Georgian region Abkhazia rejects international settlement proposal
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