Russian President Vladimir Putin has committed to keeping power supplies flowing to breakaway region Abkhazia, which is in deep energy crisis, in a Kremlin meeting with its just-elected leader, Badra Gunba, on Wednesday.
Welcoming Gunba to the Kremlin, Putin reaffirmed the “special” nature of Russia-Abkhazia relations. The election came after political instability that saw the previous leader removed from power following mass protests against an investment pact with Moscow.
Abkhazia, recognized by the international community as Georgian territory, has been experiencing regular power blackouts from low water levels at the main hydroelectric power plant and overconsumption of electricity by cryptocurrency mining businesses. Putin promised Gunba that Russia would keep exporting electricity until mid-April to help resolve the crisis.
Meanwhile, the Russian leader reaffirmed Moscow would go ahead and grant Abkhazians Russian citizenship. Gunba announced that about 70% of the population in Abkhazia already had Russian passports, pointing to Abkhazia’s close connections with Russia.
Abkhazia, a Black Sea coastal region with some 240,000 inhabitants, separated from Georgia in the early 1990s after a Moscow-backed war. Russia recognized it as independent after the 2008 conflict with Georgia, but the rest of the world regards it as Georgian territory.
In spite of political and economic dependence on Russia, however, many Abkhazians have grown uneasy about increasing Moscow influence on the territory. Georgia meanwhile criticized Abkhazia’s vote as a crude affront to its sovereignty.
With energy deficiencies and political instability continuing, Abkhazia remains a flashpoint in the broader geopolitical struggle between Russia and Georgia.
