Russian Troops Begin to Clean Ochamchire-Enguri River Rail Line

Unofficial sources estimate around 800 Russian troops are being involved in the cleaning of the Abkhazian passage of the Russia-Georgia railway.

Igor Marghania, the representative of the de-facto scheme, stated that Russian troops are expected to clean the rail lines of moss, adding the line is being cleaned with the aim of restoring the rail road.

Zaur Khajimba, Head of the Transport Department in Abkhazia, confirmed the railway is expected to be fully restored, in order to enable transit trains in the region. Khajimba did note the Russian troops appeared unexpectedly as the department had not issued any permits for them. He added however that the Abkhazian side has allowed the Russians to conduct the preparatory work.

The Abkhazian railway consists of a 101km line along the Black Sea coast, connecting Georgian lines with Russia’s North Caucasus Railway before the war in 1992.

The new Georgian government, led by Bidzina Ivanishvili from 2012, has campaigned for the restoration of the railway however no concrete steps forward have been taken at this time.

Nino Japarashvili