The de-facto president of occupied Abkhazia, Aslan Bzhania, dismissed Valter Butba from the post of the so-called Ministry of Internal Affairs and appointed Robert Kiut, who served as the head of the State Security Service before, in his place.

Bzhania told Ministry workers that he hopes that the new minister will have a “painless” start and avoid “drastic steps.”

“The current situation in the country is not simple, although we are having good results in certain directions. The public demands that the policing bodies, particularly the Ministry of Internal Affairs, work more actively. We understand the challenges facing the Ministry. We understand that more support from the government is needed.

We will raise the issue of increased support with our Russian colleagues, and look for additional resources within the country so that the employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs can properly fulfill their duties and be protected by the state,” said Bzhania.

43-year-old Robert Kiut is from the village of Kindghi in the Ochamchire region. Since 2003, He has served as an employee of the so-called State Security Service, and in 2021 Aslan Bzhania appointed him as the head of the agency. He has been awarded for his contributions by the Federal Security Service of Russia, including for successful counterintelligence.

Valter Butba served as the de-facto Minister of Internal Affairs from December 2021. The reason for his dismissal is unknown.

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