Information shootout in Galsky district

January 19: Abkhazia's Foreign Minister Sergey Shamba accused Georgia of aggravating the situation on the border due to false information disseminated by the Georgian side, he believes.

"Lately Georgia has been deliberately disseminating false information on gunfire over its territory from Abkhazia, - Shamba reported to ITAR-TASS. - This all is done to have a reason for relevant statements and to demand extension of its control and the EU monitors' control in the territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia".

The incident of January 18 was implied when the minister referred to «relevant statements». On that day Georgia's Interior Ministry reported that a police station in Khurcha village came under fire from Galsky district of Abkhazia. No return fire was opened. According to RIA Novosti the EU monitors have already arrived on the incident scene. However they withhold their comments.

According to the widely disseminated report above Georgia "is extremely concerned about the act of provocation" placing responsibility for the incident on the Russian Federation. It was considered in Georgia's Foreign Ministry that it had been one of the preplanned acts of provocation that became frequent this year in order to "arouse instability and force Georgia into large-scale military provocation", RIA Novosti reports. In conclusion official Tbilisi expressed hope that the international community would take a decision to monitor the territories of Georgia under temporary control of Russia. It is supposed that the region simply asks for a fully-fledged peacemaking mission. In particular under the auspices of the UN.

However the Abkhazian side disproved the fact of shooting. And the contradiction was expressed by several officials. The first to speak was the head of Galsky district interior department Lawrence Kogonia stating in his interview with Interfax on January 18: "Shooting was heard in the territory under Georgia's control but we don't know what was going on there".

Otar Khetsia, the republic's Interior Minister was more particular about the event. According to him the information on shooting is a provocation and the Abkhazian power structures have nothing to do with the shootouts in the Georgian territory. "We are ready to take necessary actions", - he is quoted by Rosbalt, - including the use of arms only in case of border-crossing attempts or other illegal actions".

One party accuses and appeals while the other contradicts.

In these latter days such a situation takes place almost daily. Assuming that shooting was from the Abkhazian side a reasonable question appears.

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