Lawmakers in Georgia’s separatist region of Abkhazia reject encouraging Russian investment
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$0 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*No charge for 4 weeks then price increases to the regular rate of $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
Monthly Digital Subscription
$4.75/week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $19 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 03/12/2024 (367 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Lawmakers in Georgia’s breakaway province of Abkhazia on Tuesday rejected a bill offering privileges to Russian investors that sparked days of unrest and forced the regional leader to step down.
Demonstrators in the Moscow-backed separatist region had stormed government buildings to protest the new bill allowing Russian investors to buy property in the Black Sea province, forcing the resignation of Aslan Bzhania, the region’s self-styled president.
Bzhania agreed to step down as part of a deal to end the unrest, leaving his vice president, Badra Gunba, as the region’s acting leader pending a presidential election set for February.
Abkhazia broke away from Georgia after a separatist war in the early 1990s, and Moscow recognized the independence of it and another separatist province, South Ossetia, after a brief Russia-Georgia war in 2008. Both separatist regions have relied on Moscow’s subsidies and hosted Russian troops, but many Abkhazians have been reluctant to allow Russian investors to get broader access to the region’s assets.
Abkhazia’s mountains and Black Sea beaches make it a popular destination for Russian tourists, and the demand for holiday homes has been strong.
“While making this decision, we mostly thought about our citizens,” said Daut Khutaba, a lawmaker who backed the bill, according to Apsnypress agency.
Speaking in Moscow, Konstantin Zatulin, a member of the lower house of Russian parliament, said the decision by Abkhazia’s legislature will lead to a cooling of relations with Russia.