Abkhazia
(pronounced /ębˈkeɪʒə/
or /ębˈkɑːziə/,
Abkhaz: Аҧсны
Apsny, Georgian:
აფხაზეთი
Apkhazeti or
Abkhazeti,
Russian:
Абха́зия Abhazia)
is a region in
Georgia that is
a de facto
independent[1][2][3][4]
republic[5][6]
with no
international
recognition. It
is located
within the
internationally
recognized
borders of
Georgia on the
eastern coast of
the Black Sea
and borders the
Russian
Federation to
the north. Under
Georgia's
official
subdivision, it
is an autonomous
republic
(Georgian:
აფხაზეთის
ავტონომიური
რესპუბლიკა,
Abkhaz: Аҧснытәи
Автономтәи
Республика),
with Sukhumi as
its capital,
bordering the
region of
Samegrelo-Zemo
Svaneti to the
east.
A secessionist
movement of the
Abkhaz ethnic
minority in the
region led to
the declaration
of independence
from Georgia in
1992 and the
Georgian-Abkhaz
armed conflict
from 1992 to
1993 which
resulted in the
Georgian
military defeat
and the mass
exodus and
ethnic cleansing
of Georgian
population from
Abkhazia. In
spite of the
1994 ceasefire
accord and the
ongoing
UN-monitored and
Russian-dominated
CIS peacekeeping
operation, the
sovereignty
dispute has not
yet been
resolved and the
region remains
divided between
the two rival
authorities,
with over 83
percent of its
territory
governed by the
Russian-backed
Sukhumi-based
separatist
government and
about 17 percent
governed by the
Government of
the Autonomous
Republic of
Abkhazia,
recognized by
Georgia as the
legal authority
of Abkhazia,
located in the
Kodori Valley,
part of
Georgian-controlled
Upper Abkhazia.
This dispute
remains a source
of serious
tension between
Georgia and
Russia.