OREANDA-NEWS. February 17, 2010. Dmitry Medvedev and President of Abkhazia Sergei Bagapsh discussed, in particular, Russian assistance for Abkhazia’s social and economic development and opportunities for expanding cultural and humanitarian ties.

The two leaders exchanged views on current international and regional issues, including stabilisation and security in the Trans-Caucasus.

The talks took place in narrow and expanded formats.

After the talks, ten bilateral cooperation agreements were signed: an agreement on a Russian military base in the Republic of Abkhazia, eight intergovernmental agreements – on principles for cooperation and conditions for relations in the transport sector, on cooperation in the air transportation, on cooperation in sea and air search and rescue operations in the Black Sea, on air traffic links, on cooperation in fighting illegal migration, on cooperation in disaster prevention and relief, on cooperation in environmental protection, on military technical cooperation – and a general agreement on cooperation between Vnesheconombank and Abkhazia’s Universal Bank.

In a ceremony following the talks, Fazil Iskander, a Russian writer of Abkhazian origin, was awarded a Russian state decoration – the Order for Services to the Fatherland, IV degree. Mr Medvedev said that the writer’s works combined the finest traditions of Russian literature with the centuries-old wisdom of the Abkhazian people.