INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Lawmakers in the Moscow-backed breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia voted Tuesday toscrap the controversial Russian investment deal that
investments of 2 billion rubles ($18.8 million) and higher, would have allowed wealthy Russians to buy up local property and squeeze out
investment deal, which the Russian and Abkhazian economy ministers signed on Oct
30 in Moscow.Protesters blocked highways and occupied government buildings, accusing then-President Aslan Bzhania of prioritizing Russian
economic interests over Abkhazian livelihoods.Bzhania stepped down and was replaced by his deputy, but has expressed intentions to run again
15 presidential elections.Some opposition lawmakers suggested a reworked Russian investment deal could be signed after the February
mountains that is internationally recognized as Georgian territory
Abkhazia, as well as another breakaway Georgian territory of South Ossetia, have been under de-facto Russian control since a brief 2008 war
between Moscow and Tbilisi.
