Trans-Ingur/i economic relations: A case for regulation (English)

This study is the third part of a series analysing economic relations across the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict divide, which appraises the potential of mutual economic interest as a basis for conflict transformation. The conceptual question at the centre of this research is whether economic incentives can facilitate conflict transformation by cementing mutual interest and interdependence, and whether a provisional legal framework, which would make economic activities across the conflict divide regulated and transparent (and, therefore, risk-free), would create a new impetus for peace talks. This report consists of two parts: an assessment of the economic significance of trans-Ingur/i trade and a reconstruction of legal dynamics in Georgian-Abkhaz economic relations with particular emphasis on how economic relations featured in the negotiation process.