Abkhazian PM Artur Mikvabia announced that the republic is not going to hold a referendum on annexation to Russia, RIA Novosti reports.

According to the PM, Sukhumi will not follow the example of Ossetia, where the relevant referendum is to be held in 2017. “The Ossetians are a divided nation: part of them now live in Russia, the other part being in South Ossetia. Therefore, there is a wish to re-unite,” Mikvabia noted.

The PM noted that the situation with Abkhazia is different. “We want to be an independent state, and at the same time a reliable and faithful ally for great Russia,” he said.

On April 11, President of South Ossetia Leonid Tibilov stated that the republic’s authorities have no doubts about the results of the upcoming referendum.  “I am hundred percent sure that the people will say “yes” and we will calmly turn to the supreme leadership of Russia,” he noted.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Georgia lost South Ossetia through the fault of its ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili.  He also noted that Russia cannot oppose the Osettians’ wish to hold a referendum on annexation.

South Ossetia has a status of a partially recognized republic; it declared its independence from Georgia in 1991. The legal status of the region as an independent state has been acknowledged by five states: Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Tuvalu.