MOSCOW, May 6 (RIA Novosti) - Abkhaz Foreign Minister Sergei Shamba denied on Tuesday media reports which quoted him as saying that the Georgian breakaway republic was prepared to hand over military control of its territory to Russia to ensure its security.
The respected Russian daily Izvestia published an interview with Shamba on Tuesday in which he was reported as saying that, "We [Abkhazia] agree that Russia should bring our territory under its military control, but in return demand security guarantees."
However, Shamba told journalists later in the day that this was not exactly what he had had in mind.
"In an interview with an Izvestia correspondent I said that Abkhazia was ready to sign an agreement on military cooperation with Russia. Such an agreement could suit Russia's interests considering the forthcoming [2014 Sochi Winter] Olympics. At the same time, such an agreement could provide sufficient guarantees for our security. That is what I meant," he said.
The statement came amid a dispute between the unrecognized republic, Russia and Georgia over the alleged downing of Georgian drones over Abkhazia, and with Moscow and Tbilisi trading accusations of military expansion in the territory.
The unrecognized republic claimed on Sunday it had downed two Georgian drones over its airspace and said on Monday it had detected two more unmanned reconnaissance planes, but had taken no action. Georgia dismissed the reports as "absurd," accusing the region of trying to escalate tensions.
The announcement came two weeks after Georgia accused Russia of shooting down an unmanned drone over Abkhazia, which Tbilisi considers its sovereign territory. Moscow has denied its involvement in the incident.
Meanwhile thousands of people holding pro-Russia and anti-NATO banners have gathered in a central square in the Abkhazian capital, Sukhumi, in support of Russia's recent expression of support for the republic.
On April 16, Russia's outgoing President Vladimir Putin ordered the government to draw up measures to support both Abkhazia and another breakaway Georgian republic, South Ossetia. The move infuriated Georgia, which accused Russia of trying to annex the breakaway regions.
Russia, which has administered a peacekeeping contingent in Georgia's breakaway regions Abkhazia and South Ossetia since bloody conflicts in the 1990s, dispatched additional troops to Abkhazia recently to deter what it calls a planned Georgian military offensive. Tbilisi accuses Russian troops of siding with separatists.
Moscow has also moved to step up ties with Georgia's breakaway republics against the backdrop of the Caucasus state's NATO bid and Western recognition of Kosovo's independence from Serbia. Russia, however, has not recognized the region.
Western nations criticized Russian moves toward Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
Shamba said greater support from Russia marked "the emergence of interstate relations" between Abkhazia and Russia. But he added that the self-proclaimed republic had no plans to join Russia so far.
Russia's foreign minister said on Tuesday Moscow was not planning to bring Abkhazia under its military control.
"No proposals have been made on this. I do not think the possibility is being discussed," Sergei Lavrov said.
Located on a key Europe-bound route for Caspian oil and natural gas route, Georgia has been at the center of a struggle for influence between the West and Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
