Georgian Threatens Use of Force
Georgia’s rebellious Adzharia region declared a state of emergency Saturday, and President Mikheil Saakashvili warned that he would use force to stop the country from falling apart.
“If there is a real threat of disintegration of the country, we shall use weapons to save Georgia’s unity. May everyone know that,” Saakashvili said.
The president, elected in January after leading a bloodless revolution that ousted veteran leader Eduard A. Shevardnadze, wants to bring Adzharia and two other breakaway regions -- South Ossetia and Abkhazia -- under central control.
He said he backed a peaceful solution, but added: “We shall not allow anyone to threaten and blackmail Georgia’s authorities and people.”
Adzharia’s parliamentary Speaker Georgy Tsintsikladze said the Black Sea region, which includes the major oil-shipping port of Batumi, had made its declaration because it had information that Georgia was preparing armed forces for an invasion.
Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted Tsintsikladze as announcing the state of emergency and a curfew Saturday, two days after Saakashvili denounced Adzharian leader Aslan Abashidze as a “major problem” linked to criminal elements.
Adzharia has never declared independence, unlike the two other breakaway regions, but Abashidze has run it as a personal fiefdom for years.
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