Acting State Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality Ketevan Tsikhelashvili spoke at a joint sitting of the four committees of the Parliament about the situation in Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region and said that the socio-economic, humanitarian and human rights situation in the regions is grave.

According to her, it is very visible and from year to year the pressure on the Abkhaz and Ossetian societies is increasing and consequently there is growing dissatisfaction and frustration inside.

"Now, on the 11th anniversary, it is probably quite obvious that Russia's recognition of so-called independence has become a starting point for complete dependence and isolation of these regions. The situation is neither in the interest of Georgians, nor of Abkhazians or Ossetians. This is clearly working against each of us, and that should probably serve as a motive for us to take a step further towards dialogue, common interests, cooperation, as this is the only right move in the future.

I will tell you more - I am quite sure that this situation will not serve the same to the interests of Russian itself in the long perspective. However, of course, this policy is now only for its military and political objectives in the short or medium term, and is backed by military bases, 10,000 military personnel, permanent military training, and a 100-kilometer barrier that divides our society. This arsenal, which, by the way, is used not only against Georgia, but also against our neighbors in order to maintain unresolved conflicts and in this way gain influence, will not be successful, because you will not be able to bar people forever without the prospect of progress and a better future that we are creating today for the population on the both sides of dividing line”, - said Ketevan Tsikhelashvili.

As she said, each year the number of people who are trying to reach the territory, controlled by the central Government of Georgia, is increasing.

According to the Russian statistics, if in 2017 three times more citizens were detained when trying to move to the territory controlled by the Georgian government, than vice versa, in 2018 five times more citizens were detained. This year six times more citizens have been detained. This is very hard statistics, even tragic. But it reflects well the interests of our citizens, desires and needs, which we must take into account in our politics.

One thing I want to say with full responsibility - today, at different levels, Georgian-Abkhazian and Georgian-Ossetian contacts, dialogue channels and joint projects, their numbers and range are much larger than they were in previous years. This is very important. There are a lot of factors, but yes, it is the result of our consistent, very cohesive peace policy, engagement and reconciliation. Moreover, let's not forget that in 2012 we had all these things down to zero, and we were starting from here”, - said Ketevan Tsikhelashvili.