The
ship was taken to the Batumi Port to be sold, and the ship's crew was
taken into custody. There were 15 Turkish citizen personnel and two
Turkish citizen interns aboard the ship, which was operated under the
flag of Panama and by DENSA Tanker Operators. It was carrying 2,800
tons of fuel from the Turkish Petroleum Refineries Corporation
(TÜPRAŞ), Turkey's largest oil refining company, to the Abkhaz port of
Sukhumi.The Buket is not the first vessel detained by Georgia for
trading with Abkhazia. According to official figures, Georgia seized
more than 40 ships between 1999 and 2003 and 22 ships between 2004 and
2006 on charges of “illegal crossing of Georgian waters.”
Two
additional ships sailing under the Russian and Ukrainian flags were
seized on Jan. 10, 2007. More recently, on April 5, a Turkish ship
named Denfa Demet and on April 29 another Turkish ship, named New Star,
were brought into the port of Poti. Georgia is seeking to prevent any
trade with Abkhazia, which is officially within Georgia's borders, over
the Black Sea without its supervision. Sometimes it even violates
international law. However, a new order developed in the southwest
Caucasus after Russia recognized Abkhazia's independence on Aug. 26,
2008 following a war between Russia and Georgia in August 2008.
The
new order came into being once Moscow began removing socioeconomic
sanctions on Abkhazia in March 2008. Since then, Abkhazia has rapidly
integrated with the Russian economy, and owing to railways and highways
at Russia's border crossing (Adler-Psou), Abkhazia has managed to
connect to the world. Georgia's efforts to enforce a blockade on
Abkhazia via the Black Sea are not as effective as when Russia
supported Georgia's blockade. It is for this reason that Georgia's
traditional policies toward Abkhazia are actually fostering relations
between Abkhazia and Russia.
Ankara is aware that a new order is
developing in the southwest Caucasus and that Abkhazia can no longer be
considered an insignificant factor. Since Russia's recognition of
Abkhazia's independence on Aug. 26, 2008, there has been an increase in
the number of parliamentary questions asked by main opposition
Republican People's Party (CHP) deputies. In October 2008, CHP Bursa
deputy Onur Öymen asked the transportation minister; in November 2008,
CHP Antalya deputy Tayfun Süner asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
on May 7 and Aug. 21 CHP Konya deputy Atilla Kart asked the Prime
Ministry; and most recently, on Aug. 26, CHP Bursa deputy Öymen asked
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs questions on removing the humanitarian
and trade embargo on Abkhazia and on the status of Turkish ships seized
by Georgia.
Policies that neglect Abkhazia only benefit the
Russian Federation. It is for this reason that Ankara has tried to
contribute to stability in the region by assuming a leading role in the
Caucasus Stability and Cooperation Platform. An adviser from the Prime
Ministry has been assigned to conduct studies on the Caucasus. Without
damaging its current relations with Georgia and going into conflict
with the European and Atlantic world, Ankara is searching for ways to
improve its humanitarian and trade relations with Abkhazia. Although it
is challenging, it is necessary to realize that Turkey is searching for
a new policy on Abkhazia.
