ANKARA. Dec 6 (Interfax-AVN) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has applauded agreements achieved between the conflicting parties in the breakaway province of Abkhazia.
"I am glad to see what is happening there," Putin told Russian journalists in Ankara on Monday.
"I would not like to say that it (the compromise - Interfax) was reached only thanks to Russia," he said.
"The people living on the territory in question - Abkhazia - will always have a final say. The compromise was reached thanks to these political figures themselves as they managed to heed the people's opinion and each other's views, overcome their personal ambitions and search for a way toward mutual understanding," Putin said.
Mediators from Russia did visit Abkhazia, "but their role was restricted to mediation," the president said.
"We would like to thank them for their active and productive work, but I think that they (the agreements - Interfax) are the result of the activities of Abkhazia's political leaders and people. They started to search for a compromise. And these people came into politics not to work for their personal gain and ruin the economy, but to serve the people," Putin said.