Georgia slams Łukašenka’s meeting with breakaway region’s leader

February 21, BPN. The Georgian foreign ministry has criticized Alaksandr Łukašenka’s meeting with Aslan Bzhania, the ruler of Gerogia’s breakaway region of Abkhazia.

“This action blatantly violates the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognized borders and represents an attempt to legitimize the Russian occupation regime,” the ministry said in a statement.

The foreign ministry called on Minsk “to cease taking the actions, which contradict the fundamental principles and norms of international law.”

Łukašenka and Bzhania met in Minsk on February 21, with the Belarusian leader saying that Georgia was “for some reason” reacting strongly to the meeting.

He claimed that the Belarusian-Abkhazian relationship “can promote peace and friendship between the Abkhazian and Georgian peoples.”

The Belarusian opposition voiced support for Georgia’s territorial integrity and independence in light of the visit.

When Łukašenka and Bzhania met in Abkhazia last September, Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili described it as “an unacceptable violation of Georgia’s Law on Occupied Territories.”