Georgia to claim USD 40 billion from Russia for Abkhazia and South Ossetia

Georgian authorities plan to go to international courts with claims against Russia and demand compensation worth several dozens billion US dollars for the damage caused, in the opinion of the Georgian party, by Russia's actions in Abkhazia and South Ossetia from early 1990s.

Apart from direct losses suffered by the country during the warfare, Georgia specifies indirect losses suffered by the economic development of the country. The authorities continue insisting that Russia is guilty of the August events in the Caucasus and in provoking the Georgian-Abkhazian and Georgian-Ossetian conflicts after collapse of the USSR.

As reported by Mr Malakhshiya, the losses suffered by the Georgian party before 1998 are appraised as about 20 billion dollars. He has added that "the subsequent damage up to today should be not less than that one."

They also plan to add to the sum of compensation the expected damage from the activities of Russian companies in the territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Claims will be also lodged to the Court of Strasbourg for the loss of property by Georgian refugees.

Georgian politicians see in these claims exclusively political measures aimed against Russia, the newspaper "Time of News" writes. Thus, Nikoloz Laliashvili, deputy from the oppositional "Christian Democratic Movement", has stated: "Georgia's claims to Russia will be a purely political gesture. Russia's actual paying anything is excluded."

Vakhtang Khmaladze, Georgian Professor of Constitutional Law, has noted that Tbilisi will face problems with arguing for legitimacy of its claims in international courts, the "Gazeta.Ru" reports.