Washingto: The United States Tuesday dismissed
elections in Georgia`s breakaway region of Abkhazia as illegitimate, and renewed support for what it called Georgia`s internationally-recognised borders.
In polls on Saturday that were widely seen as
illegitimate, Abkhazia elected Alexander Ankvaba, a top
politician who advocates firm ties with Russia, as the new
president of the rebel Georgian region.
"The United States does not recognise the legitimacy or
the results of the August 26 so-called elections in the
Abkhazia region of Georgia," State Department spokeswoman
Victoria Nuland said.
Abkhazia broke away from Georgia after a devastating civil
war in the 1990s. But its independence claim has only been
recogniszd by Russia and a handful of far-flung states,
following Moscow`s 2008 war with Georgia.
Symbolically, the vote coincided with the third
anniversary of Moscow`s recognition of Abkhazia and fellow
breakaway Georgian region South Ossetia as independent states,
a move that was slammed by the West.
Nuland said: "We reiterate our support for Georgia`s
sovereignty, territorial integrity within its
internationally-recognized borders."
She added: "We urge Russia to fulfill all of its
obligations under the 2008 ceasefire agreement including
withdrawal of forces to pre-conflict positions and free access
for humanitarian assistance to the territories."
PTI
