Georgia's President To Visit Armenia On October 23-24

Security for the ethnic Armenian population of Abkhazia will be in discussion during the visit to Yerevan by Georgia's President Eduard Shevardnadze, Armenia's Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan told reporters on Friday. The visit is planned for October 23 through 24. Oskanyan voiced the hope that Armenia "will not be involved in developments in Abkhazia so as to protect its compatriots, because the situation there is being rectified". "The fate of our compatriots worries Armenia and we are taking efforts on the diplomatic level in order to mitigate the obtaining situation", said the chief of the Armenian foreign policy establishment. According to some information, at least 16 ethnic Armenian civilians died during armed clashes in the territory of Abkhazia.