Abkhazia's speaker links Georgia NATO bid to recognition

March 24 (RIA Novosti) - The parliamentary speaker of the breakaway Georgian republic of Abkhazia said Monday that the recognition of Abkhaz independence was directly linked to Georgia's accession to NATO.

"The sooner Georgia joins NATO, the sooner our independence will be recognized," Nugzar Ashuba said.

His comments came days after a Russian lower house statement that recommended Moscow speed up the recognition of Abkhazia and another Georgian de facto independent republic, South Ossetia, in the event of NATO beginning the process of accepting Tbilisi as a member of the military alliance.

Ashuba welcomed the Russian MPs' statement. "This is another step toward the recognition of our country's independence," he said.

Shortly after Kosovo declared its independence on February 17, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, along with Moldova's Transdnestr, asked Russia's parliament, the United Nations and other organizations to recognize their independence.

Georgia has sought NATO membership ever since President Saakashvili came to power in 2003. Seventy-seven percent of Georgians are in favor of the former Soviet republic joining NATO, according to the results of a national referendum held on the issue earlier this year.

On February 14, Georgia handed a letter to NATO from President Mikheil Saakashvili asking for the country to be accepted into the Western military alliance's membership plan.