Selected Articles
- Abkhazia by John Colarusso
- The Stalin-Beria Terror in Abkhazia, 1936-1953, by Stephen D. Shenfield
- The International Legal Status of the Republic of Abkhazia In the Light of International Law, by Viacheslav Chirikba
- Why Can Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili Not Emulate Willi Brandt? by Liz Fuller
- Commentary on the Resolution of the European Parliament for Georgia, 17 November 2011
- Kosovo or Abkhazia: Contrasts and Comparisons
- International law and the Russian “occupation” of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, by Richard Berge
- 'Absence of Will': A commentary, prepared by Metin Sönmez
- Documents from the KGB archive in Sukhum. Abkhazia in the Stalin years, by Rachel Clogg
- On the 20th anniversary of the start of Georgia’s war against Abkhazia, by Stanislav Lakoba
- Military Aspects of the War. The Battle for Gagra (The Turning-point), by Dodge Billingsley
- Alleged human rights violations during the conflict in Abkhazia | Amnesty International, 1993
- A reply to Paul Henze’s views on Georgia, by George Hewitt - February 1993
- Ossetia-Georgia-Russia-U.S.A. Towards a Second Cold War?, by Noam Chomsky
- Thinking the Unthinkable: What if Georgia and the West Were to Recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia? by Paul Goble
- A Chance to Join the World, by Neal Ascherson
- Hitler calls on Georgians to win back Abkhazia
- Opinion: Hottentot morality - Uri Avnery
- Abkhazia: A Broken Paradise, by Georgi Derluguian
- Baron Pyotr Karlovich Uslar: Inventor of the First Abkhaz Alphabet, by Stephen D. Shenfield
- Lesson to the West: Abkhazian independence is a fact, by Inal Khashig
- Abkhazia, from conflict to statehood, by George Hewitt
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| Abkhazia Briefing: Alexander Cooley and Lincoln Mitchell Urge the West to Change Its Policy |
| Articles - Analysis |
| Thursday, 29 April 2010 20:33 |
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“The United States needs to change its policy toward Abkhazia,” stated Professor Alexander Cooley at the Harriman Institute on Monday April 26, 2010. “While we should continue to make it clear that we will not recognize its statehood, we must also engage the region. Otherwise it will just drift further into Russia.” Cooley, along with Professor Lincoln Mitchell, has just returned from Abkhazia—the two scholars are working on a Harriman-sponsored project about U.S.-Georgia relations. In April, they published an “Action Memorandum” in The American Interest addressed to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, urging the officials to change the current U.S. policy of isolation to one of “engagement without recognition.” Four states recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia—Nicaragua, Venezuela, Russia and Nauru. Mitchell acknowledged that this number is unlikely to rise significantly; however, with each new country that recognizes Abkhazia, it will become more difficult to reverse the region’s identification as a sovereign state. “Right now there is no discussion in Abkhazia, or in Moscow, about its statehood, it’s a given. That could change, but it’s going to get harder and harder to change every year, every month that goes by and with every country that signs on to that proposition,” asserted Mitchell. Cooley and Mitchell also visited Abkhazia two years ago, right before the war with Russia. “The absence of population remains striking,” conveyed Mitchell. He showed a slide show of deserted roads and abandoned buildings. There was only one slide depicting a car, people were pushing it. He described Abkhazia as a “strange, parallel universe.” Not only because of its emptiness, but because of the difference in perception and rhetoric between Abkhazia and the rest of Georgia—the Georgians are constantly talking about Abkhazia, while in Abkhazia, Georgia is a virtually neglected topic. The full article in PDF can be downloaded by clicking here (219 KB)
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