The military exercises in Georgia-NATO format will involve several thousand servicemen using heavy military equipment, aircraft and ships of the US Navy.

“The systematic increase in the scale and intensity of the operational training of the Georgian armed forces through conducting such joint exercises, where Georgian servicemen have the opportunity to build up their combat potential and acquire additional skills in conducting combat operations, causes serious concern. Such a regular practice of conducting large-scale military exercises on the territory of Georgia poses a serious threat to peace and stability in the region and undermines the efforts of the existing international formats aimed at resolving existing conflicts, ” the RA MFA statement reads.

The Foreign Ministry of Abkhazia reminds that as a result of such a short-sighted and dangerous policy of the Western countries, actively contributing to the process of militarization of Georgia, there was a significant increase in revanchist sentiments in Tbilisi, which, in turn, pushed the Georgian authorities to the decision to start military aggression in August 2008.

The Abkhaz side intends to follow the path of strengthening military-technical cooperation with the Russian Federation to ensure the defense capability and security of the Republic of Abkhazia as a symmetrical response to destructive actions of Georgia and its Western partners.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Abkhazia assess the actions of Georgia, the United States and other NATO member states as “openly provocative and aimed at destabilizing situation in the South Caucasus”

“In the event of a possible escalation of tensions in the zone of unresolved conflicts, all responsibility for possible negative consequences rests entirely with Georgia, USA and NATO,” the RA Foreign Ministry says.