Gagra is a town in Abkhazia/Georgia, sprawling for 5 km on the northeast coast of the Black Sea, at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains. Its subtropical climate made Gagra a popular health resort in Imperial Russian and Soviet times.
The Georgian Civil War lasted from 1991 to 1993 in the South Caucasian country of Georgia. It consisted of inter-ethnic and international conflicts in the regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, as well as the violent military coup d'état against the first democratically-elected President of Georgia, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, and his subsequent uprising in an attempt to regain power.
Politics in Abkhazia is dominated by its conflict with Georgia. Abkhazia became de facto independent from Georgia after the 1992–1993 war, but its de jure independence has only been recognised by a few other countries. Abkhazia is a presidential representative democratic republic with a multi-party system, wherein the President is both head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government of the Republic of Abkhazia. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the People's Assembly of Abkhazia.
Upper Abkhazia is a term introduced in 2006, to denote the northeastern part of the disputed territory of Abkhazia, that had remained under Georgian control after the 1992 War in Abkhazia. From September 2006 to August 2008 its main village, Chkhalta, hosted the Government of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia and was the seat of the Azhara municipal community. This situation came to an end in the Battle of the Kodori Valley in August 2008, when Upper Abkhazia was conquered by the Russo-Abkhazia armies, which had already controlled the rest of Abkhazia.
This article refers to the history of Abkhazia from its pre-historic settlement by the lower-paleolithic hunter-gatherers to the post-1992-1993 war situation.
The Abkhazian Armed Forces are the military forces of Abkhazia. The forces were officially created on 12 October 1992, after the outbreak of the 1992–1993 war with Georgia. The basis of the armed forces was formed by the ethnic Abkhaz National Guard. The Abkhaz military is primarily a ground force but includes small sea and air units. According to the authorities of the Republic of Abkhazia, the Abkhazian Land Forces are organised along the Swiss model – in time of peace they have personnel of 3,000 to 5,000 and in case of war further 40–50,000 reservists are called out. Georgia regards the Abkhaz armed forces as "unlawful military formations" and accuses Russia of supplying and training the Abkhaz troops.
Abkhazian railway is a rail operator in the partially recognised state of Abkhazia. Under a monopoly agreement, it is fully managed and partially owned by Russian Railways for a ten year contract from 2009-2019.
The 2008 Russo-Georgian War was a war between Georgia, on one side, and Russia and the Russian-backed self-proclaimed republics of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, on the other. The war took place in August following a period of worsening relations between Russia and Georgia, both formerly constituent republics of the Soviet Union. The fighting took place in the strategically important South Caucasus region. It is regarded as the first European war of the 21st century.
Abkhazia, officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which views the region as an autonomous republic. It lies on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, south of the Greater Caucasus mountains in northwestern Georgia. It covers 8,665 square kilometres (3,346 sq mi) and has a population of around 245,000. Its capital and largest city is Sukhumi.
Highway 131 is a designation for five north–south state highways in northeast Arkansas. One route of 5.51 miles (8.87 km) runs from Highway 1 in Haynes east to Lee County Road 719. A second route of 9.57 miles (15.40 km) begins at US Route 79 (US 79) near Brickeys and runs south to the Mississippi River levee. A third route of 8.74 miles (14.07 km) forms a semicircle around Horseshoe Lake and Porter Lake, connecting to Highway 147 at both ends. A fourth route of 3.11 miles (5.01 km) begins at Highway 147 and runs through Edmondson. A fifth route begins at Interstate 55/US 61/US 64/US 79 in West Memphis and runs north to Martin Luther King Jr. Drive/Mound City Road in West Memphis. All routes are maintained by the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD).
European route E 97 is an A-class European Route in Ukraine, Russia, Georgia, and Turkey. The highway runs for 1,360 kilometres (850 mi) in total. It connects the North Black Sea region with the South Black Sea region along the eastern shores of the sea.
Georgia's road network plays an important role in both domestic and international traffic with the four neighboring countries. This is expressed in the road numbering system. The country has a network of 13 internationally oriented trunk highways that connect the capital Tbilisi, home to about a third of the national population, with its four neighboring countries. This is also the backbone of a network of domestic oriented national roads connecting vital regions with each other.
The Georgian S1 route, is a "road of international importance" with a registered length of 542.7 kilometres (337.2 mi) within the Georgian classification system, which makes it the longest Georgian highway route. It runs from Tbilisi via Mtskheta, Gori, Khashuri, Zestaponi, Kutaisi, Samtredia, Senaki, Zugdidi, Sukhumi and Gagra to the border with Russia near Leselidze at the northwestern tip of the country, covering in practice 537 kilometres (334 mi). After crossing the Georgia–Russia border in breakaway Abkhazia, the highway continues to Sochi and Krasnodar as A147. It is part of European E60, E97 and E117 routes and Asian Highways AH5, AH81 and AH82, and connects with six other S-routes.
The Georgia–Russia border is the state border between Georgia and Russia. It is de jure 894 km in length and runs from the Black Sea coast in the west and then along the Greater Caucasus Mountains to the tripoint with Azerbaijan in the east, thus closely following the conventional boundary between Europe and Asia. In 2008 Russia recognised the independence of two self-declared republics within Georgia, meaning that in a de facto sense the border is now split into four sections: the Abkhazia–Russia border in the west, the western Georgia–Russia border between Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the South Ossetia–Russia border and the eastern Georgia–Russia border between South Ossetia and Azerbaijan. At present most of the international community refuse to recognise the independence of the two territories and regard them as belonging to Georgia.
Russian-occupied territories in Georgia are areas of Georgia that have been occupied by Russia after the Russo-Georgian War in 2008. They consist of the regions of Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia and the former South Ossetian Autonomous Region of Soviet Georgia, whose status is a matter of international dispute.
The Georgian S3 route, also known as Mtskheta-Stepantsminda-Larsi or Georgian Military Road, is a "road of international importance" within the Georgian road network and runs from Mtskheta to the border with Russia near Stepantsminda with a length of 139 kilometres (86 mi). After crossing the Georgian-Russian border the highway continues as A161 to Vladikavkaz, the capital of Russia's North Ossetia–Alania federal republic. The highway is the only open land route between Russia and Georgia (country), while routes via Georgian breakaways South Ossetia and Abkhazia are effectively closed for through traffic.
The Georgian S4 route, also known as Tbilisi–Red Bridge or Rustavi Highway, is a "road of international importance" within the Georgian road network and runs from Tbilisi via Rustavi city to the border with Azerbaijan at the Red Bridge over a distance of 57 kilometres (35 mi). After crossing the Georgian-Azerbaijan border the highway continues as M2 to Ganja and Baku.
The Georgian S10 route, also known as "Gori-Tskhinvali-Gupta-Java-Roki ", is a "road of international importance" within the Georgian road network from Gori via Tskhinvali to the Russian border at the Roki Tunnel with a length of 92.5 kilometres (57.5 mi). After crossing the Russian border the road continues as A164 highway to Alagir and the R217 "Caucasus Highway". The S10 route, which intersects with the S1 highway just outside of the city of Gori, is often referred to as Transkam or Transcaucasian Highway. It is not part of European or Asian international highway routes.
The Abkhazia–Georgia separation line is a de facto boundary set up in aftermath of the War in Abkhazia and Russo-Georgian War, which separates the self-declared Republic of Abkhazia from the territory controlled by the Government of Georgia. Republic of Abkhazia, and those states that recognise its independence, view the line as an international border separating two sovereign states, whereas the Georgian government and most other countries refer to it as an 'Administrative Border Line' within Georgian territory. The Georgian government views Abkhazia as a Russian-occupied Georgian territory and designates the de facto boundary as an occupation line in accordance with the Georgian "Law on Occupied Territories of Georgia". The Constitution of Georgia recognizes Abkhazia as autonomous within Georgia, therefore the line corresponds to the 'Administrative Border' of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia within Georgian territory.
E97 
M 4 north of Dzhubga 
