SUKHUM, April 22. /TASS/. Abkhazia’s new foreign minister, Oleg Bartsits, has called on Georgia to revoke its law on occupied territories and sign an agreement on the non-use of force with Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

"We take note of the Georgian leadership’s statements that they want to improve relations with their key neighbors – Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Russia. But we need practical confirmation, real steps. I think there are a number of steps they could take, for instance, annulling the law on occupied territories, which doesn’t stand up to scrutiny or any test of the time – we need to be realistic about the present-day realities. Second – this is very important and we will draw the attention of our colleagues during talks in the Geneva format – it is necessary to sign an agreement on the non-use of military force. Once this is done, everything else will be on the table," he told TASS.

Bartsits, 57, succeeded Sergey Shamba as top Abkhazian diplomat.