GEORGIA-RUSSIA The resignation of the president of Abkhazia shaken by protests

In the separatist region of Georgia, under Moscow’s control for 15 years, thousands of people have risen up against the government’s agreements with Russian oligarchs. Bžanija announced the step back “to preserve stability and constitutional order.” These are not unprecedented developments for Sukhumi, which is nevertheless destined to remain firmly in the hands of the Kremlin.

Tbilisi () – In a phase of great popular unrest in Georgia, divided between the orientation of the majority towards Moscow and that of the opposition towards Europe, the crisis in Abkhazia, a separatist region that together with South Ossetia is under Russian control for 15 years. The citizens of Abkhazia have risen up against the agreements of the government structures with the Russian oligarchs, demanding that they “not sell the country.”

The demonstrations of recent days have led protesters to break the doors of the parliament building and also storm the presidential administration, demanding the resignation of the self-proclaimed “president of the republic”, Aslan Bžanija, who disappeared after a first attempt at conciliation, to reappear in his native country and finally announce his resignation, accepted by the Sukhumi parliament. In the video released by the former president, he assures that he is “in my town of Tamyš with my family and friends”, denying rumors that he has fled to Russia, and stating that he resigned “to preserve stability and order constitutional of the country.

Parliament appointed Badra Gunba as vice-president in place of Bžanija, and appointed Valerij Bganba, former speaker of the Lower House, as prime minister in place of Aleksandr Ankbav, who also resigned from office. The current president of Parliament, Laša Ašuba, declared that “for the umpteenth time we had to redirect our State to the path of legality, which is fundamental for the life of our people.” For this reason, the deputies postponed the session in which the investment agreement with Moscow was to be ratified, and the presidential administration promised to annul it. The president’s press office made public the text of an agreement signed between the authorities and the opposition during the revolt, in which the latter undertook to abandon the occupied palace and liberate the center of Sukhumi, in exchange for Bžanija’s resignation. and the rejection of the contract with the Russians.

These are not unprecedented events in the tumultuous separatist region of Georgia, where there have been several presidents put on the run by the population during street protests. Bžanija himself had come to power in this way in 2019, smashing the windows and doors of the government building and forcing his predecessor to resign. To avoid the boomerang effect, he had equipped the building with armor systems, armored cars and video surveillance, protected by a large number of bodyguards, but these measures were of no use in the face of the crowds that invaded the power facilities.

The agreement signed with Russian businessmen on November 15 reignited the clashes, revealing that even in the most pro-Russian areas of Georgian territory, the rule of Moscow was not accepted, which with its oligarchs would take over all the Abkhazian lands that could bring benefits. Bžanija had done everything possible, hiding documents of the agreements, arresting activists opposed to them, ignoring contrary voices from public opinion, councils of elders and others, but then rumors spread about the corruption of several deputies to the that the Russians had supposedly promised a commission of 12 million rubles (almost 15 thousand euros) for voting in favor, which provoked new reactions among the 250 thousand inhabitants of Abkhazia. In the first session on this topic, only 21 of the 35 deputies that make up the parliamentary chamber showed up, without being able to reach the 18 votes necessary for its approval.

The government then deployed trucks and armored vehicles with water cannons and tear gas in front of the parliament, and gathered all possible police forces, but nothing could stop the onslaught of the crowd. Now the new performance of Abkhazia’s “fight for independence” is expected, knowing full well that whoever comes to power can only be a puppet in the hands of the Kremlin. Despite his resignation, Putin ignored the protests by inviting Bžanija to Moscow for the celebration of the 80th anniversary of the victory over the Nazis on May 9, 2025, while former Georgian president Mikhail Saakašvili praised the Abkhazian protesters. , who “managed to do what all Georgians should do, block the colonization of the Russians.”