Limbo World

They start by acting like real countries, then hope to become them.
BY GRAEME WOO ! "A#$ARY%&EBR$ARY '()(
http*%%+++.,oreignpolicy.com%articles%'()(%()%(-%limbo.+orl/0page1,ull
On my most recent 2isit to the Republic o, Abkha3ia, a country that /oes not e4ist, 5 inter2ie+e/ the /eputy
,oreign minister, Ma4im Gun/6ia, about the ,oreign tra/e his country /oesn7t ha2e +ith the real countries that
surroun/ it on the Black 8ea. #ear the en/ o, our chat, he pause/, looke/ /o+n at my leg, an/ aske/ +hy 5 +as
blee/ing on his ,loor. 5 tol/ him 5 ha/ slippe/ a ,e+ hours be,ore an/ rippe/ a hole in my shin, /o+n to the bone,
about the si3e o, a one9ruble coin. Bloo/ ha/ soake/ through the gau3e, an/ 5 nee/e/ stitches. :You can go to our
hospital, but you +ill be shocke/ by the con/itions,: Gun/6ia sai/. 8o he pointe/ me to the buil/ing ne4t /oor,
+here in about '( minutes 5 ha/ my leg proppe/ up on a /ark +oo/en /esk an/ +as +incing at the sting o, a
2igorous alcohol9s+abbing by the health minister himsel,. 5 +as not accustome/ to such personali3e/
go2ernment ser2ice. &ake countries ha2e to try har/er, 5 thought, an/ +on/ere/ +hether it +oul/ be pressing my
luck to ask ,or the ,inance minister to personally re,un/ my 2at an/ ,or the transportation minister to con,irm my
bus ticket back to Georgia, +hich is to say, back to reality.
Abkha3ia, along +ith a /o3en or so other ;uasi9countries teetering on the brink o, statehoo/, is in the
international community7s prenatal +ar/. 5, present an/ past suggest the ,uture, most such embryonic countries
+ill en/ stillborn, but not ,or lack o, trying. The totems o, statehoo/ are e2ery+here in these +annabe states*
o,,ices ,ille/ +ith ,unctionaries in neckties, miniature /esk ,lags, stationery +ith national logos, an/, o, course,
piles o, real bureaucratic paper+ork 99 all /esigne/ to con2ince ,oreign 2isitors like me that international
recognition is /eser2e/ an/ ine2itable. #agorno9<arabakh, the Armenian separatist encla2e +ithin A3erbai6an,
issues 2isas +ith ,ancy holograms an/ /i,,icult9to9,orge printing. 8omalilan/, the comparati2ely serene republic
split ,rom +ar9+aste/ 8omalia, prints its o+n o,,icial9looking currency, the 8omalilan/ shilling, +hose smallest
/enomination is so +orthless that to bring cash to restock their sa,es, money9changers nee/ to use /ra,t animals.
These ;uasi9states 99 +hich range ,rom /eca/es9ol/ international ,lashpoints like =alestine, #orthern >yprus,
an/ Tai+an to more obscure encla2es like Transnistria, Western 8ahara, =untlan/, 5ra;i <ur/istan, an/ 8outh
Ossetia 99 control their o+n territory an/ operate at least semi,unctional go2ernments, yet lack meaning,ul
recognition. >all them ?imbo Worl/. They start by acting like real countries, an/ then hope to become them.
5n years past, such breaka+ay ;uasi9states ten/e/ to achie2e in/epen/ence ,ast or be reassimilate/ +ithin a ,e+
years @usually a,ter a gory ci2il +ar, as +ith Bia,ra in #igeriaA. But to/ay7s ?imbo Worl/ countries stay in
political purgatory ,or longer 99 the ones in this article ha2e +an/ere/ in legal +il/erness ,or an a2erage o, )B
years 99 representing a /angerous ne+ international phenomenon* the permanent secon/9class state.
This tren/ is a mess +aiting to happen. The ,irst +orry is that these ;uasi9states7 continue/ e4istence, an/
occasional luck, embol/ens other secessionists. 5magine a +orl/ +here e2ery in/epen/ence mo2ement +ith a
crate o, <alashniko2s thinks it can become the ne+ <ur/istan, i, only it hires the right lobbyists in Washington
an/ opens a realistic9looking Ministry o, &oreign A,,airs in its makeshi,t capital. The secon/ concern is that
these aspirant nations ha2e none o, the rights an/ obligations o, ,ull countries, 6ust ambiguous status an/ guns
+ithout la+s. The $nite/ #ations is, in the en/, binary* You are in or you are out, an/ i, you are out, your mass9
pro/uce/ miniature /esk ,lag has no place in Turtle Bay.
My tours o, ?imbo Worl/ o2er the last ,e+ years ha2e taken me aroun/ the ,ull spectrum o, these encla2es, ,rom
the hopeless chatter o, 2irtual <halistan, a 8ikh separatist state that talks a big game an/ has a presi/ent in e4ile,
but not a postage stamp o, actual lan/, to the earnest /ys,unction o, 8omalilan/ to the slick9running,
optimistically almost oil9state o, <ur/istan. Each o, these +oul/9be countries is, in its o+n +ay, an ob6ect lesson
in the limits o, statehoo/.
=COTO BY BE#"AM5# ?OWY%D55
AB<CAE5A* A popular 8o2iet holi/ay /estination, Abkha3iaFs coast is no+ littere/ +ith ruste/ boats an/ scrap
metal.

They are also ghosts o, +ar93ones ,uture 99 most ha2e enemies keen to take back the breaka+ay territory 99 an/
past. They represent the +ars that time ,orgot, ,ro3en in unresol2e/ crisis because it is either too con2enient to
keep them that +ay or too problematic ,or the Real Worl/ countries on their bor/ers to come to a more lasting
solution. ?imbo, it turns out, is use,ul because it lets actual countries punish each other by pro4y an/ allo+s
them to e4act loyalty an/ tribute ,rom the ;uasi9countries /epen/ent on their patronage. 5, ?imbo status /i/n7t
e4ist, someone +oul/ in2ent it.
$n,ortunately ,or these states, +inning the ,ull Ran/9Mc#ally, General Assembly treatment is more /i,,icult
than merely hiring a pro,essional9;uality printer to start cranking out the passports. >ar2ing lan/ ,rom other
countries is nearly al+ays bloo/y an/ in most cases lea2es bor/ers that blee/ ,or /eca/es. 8omalilan/ an/
Abkha3ia ha2e e4iste/ ,or almost '( years, +ith little in/ication that +i/esprea/ recognition is imminent.
5n/ee/, the rare success,ul cases these /ays o, countries making the leap ,rom trouble/ encla2e to in/epen/ent
nation ha2e pretty much bypasse/ ?imbo entirely. Think East Timor an/ <oso2o, +hich 6umpe/ ,rom brutal
occupation to $.#. a/ministration to in/epen/ence to become t+o o, the ,irst ne+ countries o, the '(((s. The
?imbo countries ten/ to start +ith 2iolence an/ then get stuck in the ne4t stage* a path that lea/s on an/ on an/
on, apparently to no+here.
The Abkha3ian case is typical. Abkha3ia @pop. )G(,(((A occupies a stretch o, Georgia7s Black 8ea coast, an area
+hose beaches, pine ,orests, mountains, an/ lakes once attracte/ 8o2iet lea/ers 8talin, <hrushche2, an/
Bre3hne2 ,or holi/ays. A +ar in the early )GG(s separate/ Abkha3ia ,rom Georgia, killing thousan/s on each
si/e in the ,irst )H months an/ sen/ing )((,((( ethnic Georgians an/ Mingrelians ,leeing ,rom their homes in
Abkha3ia.
Mi/+i,ing Abkha3ia7s rebellion +as Russia, the Abkha3ians7 ally an/ guarantor. Georgia +as one o, the e49
8o2iet states most eager to e4plore alliances +ith the West, an/ Abkha3ia +as Russia7s +ay to make Georgia
su,,er ,or its in,i/elity. Russia sent support to Abkha3ia, opene/ the Abkha3ian bor/er ,or tra/e, an/ gra/ually
took steps 6ust short o, anne4ation. 5n '((I, it grante/ Russian passports to all Abkha3ians, an/ ,inally 99 once
Abkha3ia ha/ become entirely reliant on Russia 99 it became the ,irst country to recogni3e Abkha3ian
in/epen/ence. Accor/ing to Abkha3ians, Georgia planne/ to in2a/e in the summer o, '((J, an/ only an in,lu4
o, Russian troops into Abkha3ia at the last minute le/ Georgia to make a play 99 ultimately /oome/, /ue to
Russia7s surprisingly strong response 99 ,or 8outh Ossetia, another Russian client state insi/e Georgia, instea/.
The uneasy stan/o,, meant Russia ne2er ,ormally anne4e/ Abkha3ia ,rom Georgia, an/ in return the Abkha3ians
ma/e sure the Russians ne2er nee/e/ to anne4 them, because they /o Russia7s bi//ing any+ay. This guarantee
has embol/ene/ the Abkha3ians, +ho taunt the Georgian army 6ust across the line o, control. :The ,irst Georgian
sol/ier +ho crosses the 5nguri Ri2er +ill be shot,: Gun/6ia 2o+e/ +hen 5 2isite/ in the ,all.
As the health minister, a lapse/ /ermatologist name/ Eurab Marshaniya, rinse/ the clotte/ bloo/ ,rom my leg,
he sighe/ in ,rustration at his go2ernment7s pre/icament. 5 tol/ him ho+ impresse/ 5 +as at the pace o,
Abkha3ia7s return to its ol/ 8o2iet status as a tourist resort. When 5 last came to the Abkha3ian capital o,
8ukhumi in '((I, the one9time 6e+el o, the boar/+alk, the Cotel Abkha3ia, +as bombe/ out an/ aban/one/ to
+ee/s. #o+ it +as hal,9repaire/, an/ its ri2al, the Ritsa Cotel, ha/ opene/ its suites to the richest o, Abkha3ia7s
) million annual 2isitors, nearly all o, them Russian. @Ritsa7s Room '(J, ,rom +hose balcony a 2acationing ?eon
Trotsky a//resse/ a cro+/ on the occasion o, ?enin7s /eath, goes ,or about K)B( a night.A Abkha3ia7s hospitals
may ha2e been :shocking,: but the city as a +hole looke/ no +orse ,rom the outsi/e than a /o+n9market cottage
to+n on ?ake 8uperior. Marshaniya +as all shrugs an/ sai/ as long as Georgia still inten/e/ to march back into
8ukhumi, the gains +ere ,ragile.
5n the meantime, Abkha3ia7s ,oreign policy is base/ on courting anyone +ho might recogni3e its so2ereignty.
aniel Ortega7s go2ernment in #icaragua oblige/ in '((J, likely in,luence/ by ol/ 8o2iet ties, an/ Dene3uelan
=resi/ent Cugo >hL2e3 ,ormally ackno+le/ge/ Abkha3ia in '((G. E4cept ,or Russia, though, Abkha3ia has no
real ,ormal relations, an/ its /iplomats are strictly limite/ in +here they can go. The $nite/ 8tates, a close ally
o, Mikheil 8aakash2ili7s go2ernment in Georgia, /enies 2isa re;uests ,rom Abkha3ian go2ernment o,,icials, an/
other states such as 5n/ia ha2e been persua/e/ to /o the same.
=COTO BY #ARAYA# MACO#
AB<CAE5A* An aban/one/ apartment block in the to+n o, ran/a.

That lea2es Abkha3ia represente/ instea/ by ;uirky 2olunteers like George Ce+itt, a pro,essor at the $ni2ersity
o, ?on/on7s 8chool o, Oriental an/ A,rican 8tu/ies +ho has ma/e a specialty o, Abkha3ia7s culture an/ its
language, Abkha3, a linguistic ,reak sho+ +ith IM consonants an/ only one 2o+el. Ce+itt kno+s Abkha3 as +ell
as any non9Abkha3ian, an/ he +rites impassione/ an/ in,orme/ essays on the Abkha3ian ;uestion. But he is
2ery much a scholar, not a political strategist. 5 2isite/ Ce+itt be,ore my ,irst 2isit to Abkha3ia in '((I an/
aske/ +hether he nee/e/ anything ,rom Georgia, +here he is /eci/e/ly non grata. 5 thought he might like a
book, or a postcar/. Ce sai/ there ha/ been calumnies against him in the Mingrelian9language ne+spapersN coul/
5 in2estigate0 Alas, 5 coul/ not.
Encouraging states like Abkha3ia to ,lourish an/ proli,erate has create/ precisely the kin/ o, secon/9class
statehoo/, +ith uncertain rights an/ responsibilities in the international system, that /iplomacy +as /esigne/
o2er the last se2eral centuries to a2oi/. The =eace o, Westphalia establishe/ an international or/er o, ,i4e/
boun/aries in )I-J an/ ma/e no pro2isions ,or the e4istence o, ,unctionally in/epen/ent encla2es in
Bran/enburg9=russia, say, that &rance coul/ use ,or le2erage. The +hole point +as to come to conclusions about
+hat +as so2ereign territory an/ agree to knock o,, the +ar,are an/ ambiguity. That +as in part ,or the +el,are
o, those encla2es, so they +ere not trappe/ in uncertainty an/ use/ as pro4ies 99 or +orse, neocolonies 99 by
,irst9class states. But ?imbo Worl/ su,,ers that e4act ,ate to/ay.
Ethiopia, smarting ,rom the loss o, its actual colony Eritrea t+o /eca/es ago, e,,ecti2ely a/opte/ an uno,,icial
secon/ one on the northern e/ge o, 8omalia, calle/ 8omalilan/. 8omalilan/ +as among the most noisome an/
rebellious areas in 8omalia un/er the /ictatorship o, Muhamma/ 8ia/ Barre. 5n the late )GJ(s, 8ia/ Barre kille/
hun/re/s o, thousan/s in bombings o, its main city, Cargeisa, an/ the countrysi/e. When 8ia/ Barre ,ell,
8omalilan/ rapi/ly asserte/ itsel, as an in/epen/ent state, an/ it is no+ approaching '( years o, relati2e peace.
The coastline that Ethiopia lost in Eritrea it has e,,ecti2ely gaine/ back in 8omalilan/, +ith the port o, Berbera
no+ a key tra/e 2al2e into the Gul, o, A/en. Ethiopia7s support ,or 8omalilan/ also represents a perpetual
outrage to the 8omalis o, Moga/ishu. While continuing to ,ight among themsel2es ,or nearly t+o /eca/es, most
,actions agree that Ethiopia is a mortal e4ternal threat, especially because it in2a/e/ 8omalia proper in '((I.
?ike the Abkha3ians, the 8omalilan/ers are as help,ul as they are hapless, as 5 ,oun/ ,rom the moment 5 steppe/
into their small representation o,,ice in the Ethiopian capital, A//is Ababa. At most A,rican embassies, the
/iplomats regar/ 2isa applicants as capti2e sources o, re2enue. But rather than a /roopy9li//e/ kleptocrat, the
8omalilan/ o,,ice pro/uce/ a slim, energetic young man +ith an en/earing eagerness to sho+ o,, his country. Ce
came out to stamp my passport an/ sat /o+n ne4t to me to sketch a map o, the comple4 lan/ 6ourney bet+een
A//is an/ Cargeisa. :They gro+ the best khat here,: he sai/, re,erring to the mil/ly narcotic che+ popular in the
region. Cis in/e4 ,inger trace/ a prou/ little circle on an area 6ust on the Ethiopian si/e o, the bor/er. &or K'(, he
presse/ into my passport a ,ull9page 2isa, as o,,icial9looking as any in A,rica.
On the 6ourney he /escribe/, there +as an emphatic lack o, o,,icial/om, a stu/ie/ /enial by Ethiopia that any
bor/er e4iste/ at all. At "i6iga, )( hours ,rom A//is an/ the last big to+n be,ore 5 +oul/ cross into the
none4istent country o, 8omalilan/, 5 ha/ to hunt /o+n a police o,,icer to get him to inscribe my passport +ith a
note con,irming 5 ha/ e4ite/ Ethiopia legally. This +as a bor/er that e4iste/ only by re;uest.
Once on the 8omalilan/ si/e it took about t+o hours o, o,,9roa/ /ri2ing 99 through hills o, /esert scrub, past
her/ers crouching in huts ma/e o, /iscar/e/ $.#. an/ usai/ ,lour sacks 99 be,ore 5 met anything resembling a
sign o, go2ernment. At the e/ge o, Cargeisa, a hilly to+n +hose lights +ere the one glo+ing /ot on the hori3on
as 5 /ro2e, t+o men +ith machine guns intercepte/ the car to /eman/ my papers. This, 5 thought, +oul/ be my
cue to /o +hat one /oes at so many other A,rican bor/ers, +hich is to +ink an/ o,,er smokes an/ a small bribe
in e4change ,or sa,e passage. But be,ore 5 coul/ phrase my tentati2e o,,er, they ,oun/ the inky blue stamp in my
passport an/ +a2e/ me through, asking only that 5 register +ith the Ministry o, &oreign A,,airs the ne4t /ay.
$nlike Abkha3ia, 8omalilan/ /i/ not e4actly enchant me as a place beauti,ul enough to /ie ,or. =erhaps it +as
the heat 99 +ell o2er )(( /egrees &ahrenheit, +ith nothing to /rink, /ue to strict en,orcement o, the Rama/an
,ast 99 or perhaps the buggy eyes an/ green9,lecke/ teeth o, the khat9che+ers outsi/e my hotel room each night.
The stan/ar/ meal, spaghetti an/ groun/ camel meat, eaten +ith the han/s, ma/e clear +hy 5 ha/ ne2er been to a
8omali restaurant outsi/e 8omalia.
=COTO BY #ARAYA# MACO#
8OMA?5?A#* The port at Berbera, use/ as a tra/ing center by Ethiopia.

The 8omalilan/ers, o, course, ha/ alrea/y /one ;uite a bit o, /ying ,or their lan/ an/ ,or their spaghetti, an/
they misse/ no chance to tell me ho+ cynical an/ cruel the international community ha/ been by not recogni3ing
their state. At the ,oreign ministry satellite o,,ice set up to stamp in the rare tourist, t+o e4citable 8omalilan/ers
pointe/ out that 8omalilan/ ha/ multiparty elections, a ,ree press, an/ an anti9terrorism policy that the
go2ernment en,orce/ +ith 3eal. 5t ha/ /one all this +ithout recognition an/ +ithout help ,rom the Worl/ Bank,
the 5nternational Monetary &un/, or any other agency that re;uires an international rubber stamp to operate. 5,
this +as illegitimacy, other A,rican go2ernments shoul/ try it.
An/ in any case, +hat +as the alternati2e0 A reconstitute/ 8omalia +oul/ re;uire reconnecting 8omalilan/ +ith
+hat may be the +orl/7s most spectacularly ,aile/ state. Where 8omalilan/ has a ,le/gling coast guar/, 8omalia
has ,lourishing pirates, an/ +here Cargeisa has a ,orm o, /emocracy, Moga/ishu has ho+ling anarchy
punctuate/ by ,its o, sharia la+.
Yet this is the alternati2e urge/ by nearly e2eryone in the region. Arab states are reluctant to see 8omalia, a
,ello+ Arab ?eague member, slice/ up an/ lease/ to pre/ominantly >hristian Ethiopia. The A,rican $nion
+orries that the 8omalilan/ e4ample +ill persua/e separatist mo2ements that i, they 6ust ,ight har/ enough,
they7ll e2entually get their o+n $.#. seats. 8omalilan/, o, course, retorts by pointing out that 8omalia is being
use/ by ,oreign states 6ust as surely as Ethiopia is using 8omalilan/. Moreo2er, 8omalilan/ asks +hether
peace,ul an/ responsible /emocracy isn7t something +orth incenti2i3ing, regar/less o, +hether the peace,ul an/
responsible /emocracy is being practice/ by separatists. &or no+, e2en Ethiopia, 8omalilan/7s closest regional
ally, hasn7t besto+e/ recognition, an/ there is no sign it inten/s to.
>ritics charge ?imbo Worl/ers +ith ha2ing things back+ar/, e2en practicing a ,orm o, cargo cultism. "ust as
#e+ Guinean tribes built cru/e airstrips to lure planes bearing 2aluable cargo, ;uasi9countries buil/ cru/e
,oreign ministries in the 2ain hopes o, luring ambassa/ors bearing cre/entials ,rom ?on/on, =aris, an/
Washington. These critics say ?imbo Worl/ countries are ,atally misle/ about ho+ in/epen/ence is suppose/ to
+ork* Recognition prece/es, rather than ,ollo+s, the creation o, an actual state. The list o, ?imbo Worl/ alumni
99 countries that gaine/ in/epen/ence by acting like in/epen/ent states ,irst, an/ then getting recognition 99 is
small, an/ the ,e+ e4amples o, partial success @<oso2o is stuck on IH recogni3ing countries, Tai+an on 'HA
suggest ?imbo is a permanent con/ition +hen it is not a ,atal one.
5n/ee/, once ?imbo Worl/ countries ha2e reache/ a certain le2el o, /e2elopment, many o, them start
consi/ering the possibility that in/epen/ence isn7t the brass ring it once appeare/. Abkha3ia might ha2e entere/
that phase. A,ter Georgia su,,ere/ an embarrassing /e,eat trying to reclaim 8outh Ossetia @the other ;uasi9state
+ithin its bor/ersA in '((J, Abkha3ia became embol/ene/ an/ /e2elope/ its tra/e an/ in,rastructure
signi,icantly +ith Russian backing. 5t e4pan/e/ its sea tra/e, /espite a blocka/e 2igorously en,orce/ by the
Georgian na2y. @Occasional Turkish merchant 2essels break the blocka/e by sailing to the Russian port o, 8ochi
an/ then skirting the coast until they reach 8ukhumi.A
#o ;uasi9state has reache/ a happier ?imbo status than 5ra;i <ur/istan. Throughout the )GG(s, 5ra;i <ur/istan
+as ri2en by internal /i2isions, an/ at times its senior lea/ers 2ie+e/ each other as greater bogeymen than
8a//am Cussein. 5n )GGI, the <ur/istan emocratic =arty e2en allie/ +ith Cussein against the =atriotic $nion
o, <ur/istan @pukA an/ in2ite/ his ,orces into 5rbil to ,lush out the puk. The ,actions reache/ an icy truce in
'((', +ith the un/erstan/ing that they +oul/ cooperate to /islo/ge Cussein an/ achie2e e2entual in/epen/ence.
#ominally, in/epen/ence remains the goal. 5n/ee/, suspicions that 5ra;i <ur/ish politicians ha2e /iscar/e/ that
goal ha2e /one much to alienate them ,rom their people. But since my ,irst 2isit there in '((H, the rationale ,or
,ull in/epen/ence has become less clear, 6ust as the apparatus o, the <ur/ish state has become slicker an/ more
sophisticate/. On that ,irst 2isit, the <ur/istan go2ernment asserte/ itsel, mostly through the in/elicate searches
by its peshmerga militia, +hich /aily tore apart my luggage an/ ri,le/ through it +ith ruthless attention.
=COTO BY 8TE&A#O E ?$5>5%D55
AB<CAE5A* octors in Abkha3iaFs Gulripsh hospital /iscuss a ne+ TB case.

Within a ,e+ years the peshmerga ha/ become smoother, an/ the go2ernment more com,ortable +ith its ,ate.
Barham 8alih, the puk7s representati2e in Washington, le/ the <ur/s7 success,ul push to get the $nite/ 8tates to
/islo/ge Cussein. Ce e2entually became a /eputy prime minister o, post9Cussein 5ra;, an/ puk chie, "alal
Talabani, the 5ra;i presi/ent. 5n Washington, they retaine/ Barbour Gri,,ith O Rogers, the Republican9a,,iliate/
lobbying ,irm, an/ their presentation to the outsi/e +orl/ became e2en cannier, +ith less mention o, phrases like
:autonomy: that might spook the Turks ne4t /oor.
5 crosse/ into <ur/istan ,rom Turkey at mi/night, on ,oot, an/ got a big stamp in/icating :Republic o, 5ra;9
<ur/istan Region.: On either si/e o, the bor/er, trucks +ere line/ up hun/re/s /eep, loa/e/ +ith goo/s an/
rea/y to pay a he,ty sum in /uties 99 money /estine/ not ,or Bagh/a/ but ,or the <ur/ish capital o, 5rbil. Turkey
+as a happy partner in this looting o, the transport paths, eager to +atch 5ra;7s <ur/ish lea/ership enrich itsel, as
long as it stoppe/ short o, asking the +orl/ to treat its bor/ers as reality.
When 5 crosse/ the southern e/ge o, <ur/istan, +here Arab 5ra; an/ its then9horri,ic carnage began, the only
in/ication o, the change in a/ministration +as the /i,,erent color uni,orm, light blue ,or the Arab 5ra;i police in
lieu o, the /esert camou,lage o, the peshmerga. 5n the early /ays a,ter Cussein7s toppling, the bor/er ha/ been a
2igorously police/ checkpoint that separate/ <ur/istan unmistakably ,rom its neighbor. #o+ the <ur/s +ere
less 3ealous in marking the line, as i, to say* &eel the ,ear as you lea2e the sa,ety o, our territory an/ enter the
lan/ o, Arabia an/ o, car bombs. We /on7t nee/ to mark our bor/er on the map because the chill in your spine is
marking it ,or us.
By '((I, the +or/ :in/epen/ence: +as e2ery+here +hispere/ but no+here spoken. 5nstea/, <ur/ish o,,icials
brought me to eat at the bu,,et o, the ne+ hotel they calle/ the 8heraton @not really a 8heraton, but this +as not
really a country eitherA, to inhale the ,resh paint ,umes at the clean an/ or/erly international airport, to ogle the
tracts o, lu4ury apartments un/er /e2elopment by a Turkish construction ,irm. =ushing the in/epen/ence issue
+oul/ ha2e seeme/ gauche, +ith ?imbo so pro,itable.
Throughout my tra2els in ?imbo Worl/, the con2ersation +oul/ o,ten s+ing back to $ruguay, +here a )GHH
agreement +as seale/ that is to/ay an article o, ,aith to ?imbo Worl/ers. The Monte2i/eo >on2ention
establishe/ a theory o, statehoo/ that treate/ countries like star,ish, capable o, sur2i2ing a,ter ha2ing their limbs
hacke/ o,, an/ able to sprout ne+ an/ in/epen/ent states ,rom those hacke/9o,, limbs.
5t has come to be kno+n as the /eclarati2e theory o, statehoo/* the i/ea that a state is any entity +ith a ,i4e/
territory an/ population, an/ a go2ernment that can enter into relations +ith other states. #ee/less to say, i, the
letter o, this con2ention, to +hich the $nite/ 8tates is a signatory, +ere ,ollo+e/, nearly e2ery country in ?imbo
Worl/ +oul/ imme/iately con2ert into ,ull nationhoo/ an/ e2ery rebel group on the planet +oul/ be scrambling
to print business car/s ,or its hastily con2ene/ /iplomatic corps. ?ike many s+eeping /eclarations o, ,oreign
policy, the Monte2i/eo >on2ention has been the 2ictim o, +ise neglect nearly e2er since its signing. 8till, the
opposite e4treme in international relations 99 gi2ing e4isting countries a 2eto o2er e2ery sel,9/etermination
mo2ement 99 har/ly recommen/s itsel,, an/ +hate2er happy me/ium e4ists bet+een the t+o has not yet been
reache/.
8ome in ?imbo Worl/ are at least temporarily content +ith this ambiguity. 5n his 8ukhumi o,,ice, Ma4im
Gun/6ia pointe/ out that being Russia7s pa+n is no less embarrassing than being America7s pa+n, like
8aakash2ili. An/ in any case, recognition is o2errate/, as long as the ;uasi9state7s economy is poor. :What7s the
use o, being recogni3e/ like A,ghanistan0: he aske/. :They ha2e the ,irst ,lag at the $.#. s;uare, but +ho +ants
to li2e there0:
That e2ening, as 5 limpe/ along the Black 8ea boar/+alk @gingerly, to keep my leg ,rom tearing back openA, it
+as easy to see his point. 5n/ee/, it +asn7t ob2ious +hy Abkha3ia +as pursuing recognition so ,er2ently, +hen
e2en i, it achie2e/ legitimacy it +oul/ probably ha2e to rely on Russia ,or most e2erything, inclu/ing security.
&or no+, a glance at the shore sho+e/ that Abkha3ia ha/ more than most real countries* the beauty o, a moonlit
sea, an/ the beginnings o, prosperity ,rom a ,lo+ o, tourists gla/ to /isgorge their rubles to buy ,ancy hotel
rooms, cheap +ine, an/ rich >aucasian pastries. The Russian holi/ay9makers +ho +alke/ past me +ere a
constant remin/er that the /esire ,or true in/epen/ence, ,rom Georgia an/ ,rom Russia, +as not a realistic one,
no matter ho+ har/ Abkha3ians +orke/ to achie2e it. But as 5 looke/ out on the scene, the moonbeams caught a
ship in the /istance, an/ the uncertainty o2er +hether that ship ,le+ a Georgian ,lag ma/e me un/erstan/, ,or a
secon/, +hat keeps them trying.
=COTO BY #ARAYA# MACO#