Dispatching Troops to Kodori is non-Constitutional – MP Says

(Tbilisi, January 22, Civil Georgia) – Member of the Parliamentary faction Revival Valeri Gelbakhiani claims that dispatching Georgian army units to Kodori gorge, the only territory in breakaway region of Abkhazia controlled by the Georgian government, was non-constitutional.

Gelbakhiani stated at the news conference on January 22, that according to the Georgian constitution, decision about relocation of the Georgian army should be agreed with the Parliament.

350 Georgian soldiers were dispatched to Kodori gorge last October, when the armed clashes between Georgian-Chechen joint guerrilla groups and Abkhazian fighters took place.

On January 17 Georgian Special Affairs Minister signed a protocol with the Abkhazian side, which caused fears in Georgian politicians that, the Georgian army units would leave Kodori, the only territory in breakaway Abkhazia controlled by the Georgian government.

Statement of MP Valeri Gelbakhiani is the first of this kind, as the absolute majority of MPs and politicians expressed concern regarding the Georgian army’s possible withdrawal from Kodori.