Alexander Ankvab, the prime minister of breakaway Abkhazia, has denied saying that the Georgian side was behind an attempt on his life, the Abkhaz news agency, Apsnipress, reported on July 16.

Ankvab’s armored Land Cruiser was attacked with a grenade-launcher near Gudauta on July 9 – the third apparent attempt on his life in two years.

MediaNews, a Georgian news agency, had earlier printed what they said was an interview with Ankvab. They quoted him as saying: “The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia is involved in these provocations.” The alleged interview was subsequently reprinted and published by various Georgian media sources, including the Tbilisi-based, Russian-language newspaper, Svobodnaya Gruziya.

“I have not been interviewed by any Georgian news agency or newspaper, including Svobodnaya Gruziya," Ankvab said. "And I am not even going to give an interview to any of them.” 

“I think it is unethical to report this kind of frivolous information,” he added.

Meanwhile, the chief prosecutor of the breakaway region, Safarbey Mikanba, told Apsnipress there was “slight progress” in the investigation into the assassination attempt.

He declined to elaborate further, but he confirmed that Russian law enforcement agencies were providing assistance, including the forensic examination of evidence.

Abkhaz leader Sergey Bagapsh warned on July 10 he would sack the leadership of law enforcement agencies if the investigation did not produce results within two weeks.