Azernews.Az

By Nazrin Gadimova

Russia's National Olympic Committee (NOC) has included the Georgian rebel regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in its database as separate entities, Georgian media reported on September 17.

According to the reports, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) based in Lausanne is not aware of this.

"It's a pretty bad precedent," First Vice President of the Georgian NOC Elgudja Berishvili said. "It will be followed by due reaction from our side. Abkhazia and South Ossetia are not recognized by the United Nations and 99 per cent of the world and, of course, by the International Olympic Committee, therefore, their participation in any program of the Olympic Games as independent states is not possible."

Georgia's Foreign Ministry is reportedly preparing a protest note in this regard.

Georgia and Russia, its giant northern neighbor, have maintained no diplomatic relations since a brief war in 2008. Tbilisi broke off relations with Moscow in August 2008 when Moscow crushed a Georgian assault to reassert control over two rebel regions -- South Ossetia and Abkhazia -- and later recognized the regions. Georgia announced the two unrecognized republics as occupied territories in September 2008.