In a statement made last Saturday (26 May 2007), the Georgian President promised real self-government for Abkhazia, as long as the region remains part of Georgia.

Below is an extract from an article published by ITAR-TASS:

TBILISI, May 26 (Itar-Tass) -- Georgian President Mikhail Saakashavili promised Abkhazian “guarantees of autonomous development and real self-government” within Georgia.

“We advocate a peaceful resolution of the Abkhazian conflict on the basis of territorial integrity and unity of Georgia,” the president said at the opening of a summer youth camp in the village of Ganmukhuru, which is adjacent to Abkhazia’s Gali district.

He promised to “take into account the interests of Abkazians, Georgians and all people who lived in the Abkhazian region before the 1992-1993 armed conflict.”

[...]