Abkhazia and the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict_Autumn 2009, December 2009

European Union Institute for Security Studies1 Union européenne European Union AbkhAziA And the GeorGiAn-AbkhAz conflict: Autumn 2009 * Sabine Fischer is a Senior Research Fellow at the EU Institute for Security Studies The 2008 Russia-Georgia war and... More

European Union Institute for Security Studies1 Union européenne European Union AbkhAziA And the GeorGiAn-AbkhAz conflict: Autumn 2009 * Sabine Fischer is a Senior Research Fellow at the EU Institute for Security Studies The 2008 Russia-Georgia war and Russia’s subsequentrecognitionofthebreakawayregionsofAbkhazia and South Ossetia have widened the gulf between the two entities and Tbilisi. On 12 December 2009 - almost one and a half years later - presidential elections will take place in Abkhazia. The incumbent, President Sergey Bagapsh, is likely to remain in office. This Analysis offers insights into the domestic situation in Abkhazia in the pre-election period and links it to the current state of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict and international mediation efforts. The domestic situation in Abkhazia In the past, Abkhaz domestic politics was shaped by so-called ‘political movements’. But according to a law adopted in March 2009, those loose political groupings were required to be tra Less