Poor weather conditions have forced postponement of talks between top Georgian officials and representatives of the country's breakaway region of Abkhazia.

Georgian State Minister for Conflict Resolution Giorgi Khaindrava had planned to travel to Abkhazia's Gali district for talks with the breakaway region's Interior Minister Sergei Khamba. The discussions, which had been expected to focus on security issues in the area, have been rescheduled for next week.

Abkhazia has acted as an independent state since it drove Georgian troops out of the region in the early 1990s. However, it is not recognized by other countries and Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili has pledged to bring it under central government control.