Official Minsk not interested in recognising separatist authorities in Abkhazia

Valery Bganba, acting President of Abkhazia and Parliamentary Speaker wrote to President Alexander Lukashenko requesting him to consider recognition of Abkhazia’s sovereignty and independence.

Sukhumi has appealed to the Belarusian leadership several times since declaring its independence from Tbilisi, but the authorities in Minsk have used various pretexts not to recognise Abkhazia’s sovereignty. Previously, Russian media have pressured Lukashenko for his position, which differs from the Kremlin’s, by calling him a “traitor to the Russian world” – especially after Lukashenko refused to support the Kremlin’s actions in Ukraine. Belarus is not going to disrupt the Belarus-EU settlement process and is likely to ignore Sukhumi’s request once again.