No Sevastopol: Russian fleet’s escape route

Russia plans to establish a Black Sea Fleet base in Abkhazia, a temporarily occupied territory of Georgia. Aslan Bzhania, the so-called “leader” of the region, stated this a day after meeting with the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin.

“We have signed an agreement, and there will be a permanent base of the Russian Navy in the Ochamchire district in the near future,” Bzhania said and emphasized that this will supposedly increase Russia’s and Abkhazia’s defense capabilities.

Until now, the Russian fleet was based in the temporarily occupied Sevastopol. Recent attacks by Ukraine have damaged some of the Russian ships and forced the occupiers to look for a new place of deployment.

“Look at what Ukraine has now done in the Black Sea! Ukraine has achieved the functional defeat of the Russian Black Sea Fleet,” said UK junior defense minister James Heappey.

The UK Defence Intelligence also stated that Russia’s Black Sea Fleet will not be able to have the same control over the Black Sea as before, and its ships will feel less safe in ports after a series of successful attacks by Ukraine.

Abkhazia’s “leader” statement shows that “Moscow has come to terms with the loss of Sevastopol as the main base of its naval forces in the Black Sea,” writes Echo of the Caucasus, a Radio Liberty project. At the same time, such plans of Russia pose a new threat to Georgia, journalists say.

Russia launched armed aggression against Georgia in August 2008. In conclusion, the Kremlin occupied one-fifth of the territory of Georgia and declared the “independence” of two entities – South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Most of the countries of the world recognize these self-proclaimed states as part of Georgia.