The State Security Service of Georgia published the 2023 report, underscoring the persistent threat posed by the Russian occupation forces in Russian-occupied Abkhazia and Tskhinvali regions, with ongoing illegal military activities, human rights violations.

“Throughout the year, the Russian occupation forces intensified illegal activities such as illegal detentions and borderisation.

During the reporting period, the current situation in terms of security became especially difficult and complicated in November 2023, when the representatives of the Russian occupation forces killed the Georgian citizen Tamaz Ginturi. Another victim of occupation was in Abkhazia, where the Georgian citizen Vitali (Temur) Karbaia was killed.

At the end of 2023, a total of 8 citizens of Georgia were illegally detained. The Government of Georgia continues to use all formal and informal mechanisms and legal levers at its disposal, especially the concentration of efforts of the international community, in order to achieve the unconditional release of the illegally detained citizens as soon as possible.

In 2023, the hotline in the direction of occupied Abkhazia was activated 374 times, and in the direction of occupied Tskhinvali - 1,585 times.

During the last year, 3 meetings of international discussions in Geneva were held, at which the representatives of the SSSG, within the mandate, emphasized the dangers arising from the occupation in terms of security. Among them, attention was focused on gross violations of human rights, illegal detentions, so-called on the illegal process of bordering and others.

In 2023, the representatives of the occupied Abkhazia were almost ready to resume the meetings of the incident prevention and response mechanism in Gali, although no effective step was taken by the occupation regime.

In 2023, 10 IPRM meetings were held in the direction of occupied Tskhinvali, including three - the so-called technical meeting.

The representatives of the central government demanded the unconditional and immediate release of illegally detained persons at the mentioned meetings. It was emphasized that it is necessary to give the local population the right to free movement. Also, attention was focused on the so-called on the damaging consequences of the illegal bordering process”, - reads the report.