ONLY REFERENDUMS CAN RESOLVE TERRITORIAL CONFLICTS – ABKHAZ FOREIGN MINISTRY

Interfax News Agency
Aug 4 2008
Russia

The Abkhaz Foreign Ministry has called on the world community to
recognize the results of the referendums conducted in the unrecognized
republics on the post-Soviet space.

The Abkhaz Foreign Ministry published a statement made by U.S.

Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Bryza in which he has proposed
to make a referendum in Nagorno-Karabakh for the local residents to
resolve the issue of independence themselves.

The Abkhaz Foreign Ministry said this proposal was "most constructive
and rational."

"Only such a proposal will make it possible to find a way out of the
blind alley that has persisted for many years and take this region
out of the economic stagnation and isolation offering hope for lengthy
peace and development to the residents of Nagorno-Karabakh," it said.

However, the Abkhaz Foreign Ministry regrets that the world community
and mediators in the Georgian-Abkhaz negotiating process ignored the
results of the referendum and are still insisting on Abkhazia’s return
to Georgia as an autonomy.

The Abkhaz authorities have declared that Abkhazia shall not return to
Georgia and have refused to discuss the issue of Abkhaz’s political
status with anybody. The status was determined by the people of
Abkhazia at a referendum in October 1999. At that time, 97% of the
population voted for Abkhaz independence.