Abkhazia seeks help from EU

The Abkhazian Foreign Minister has asked Peter Semneby, the representative of the European Union in the South Caucasus, to undertake the efforts necessary to return to Abkhazia its citizen Harry Dzhopua, illegally detained in Georgia on the 9th of October, RIA Novosti reports, citing the ministry’s statement issued on the 11th of October.

The statement says that it is not the first time that the Georgian secret services have kidnapped Abkhazian citizens, who then disappear in Georgia. One of them was David Sigua, who was kidnapped by the Georgian security forces in February 2007.

On the 9th of September 2010 the authorities of Abkhazia approved a request from the European Union to release Malkhaz Kordzaia, convicted of illegal weapon possession. The law-enforcement authorities of Abkhazia passed Kordzaia to Peter Semneby, the EU Special Representative in the South Caucasus in Sukhumi.