Mayor of Moscow Yuri Luzhkov said in Sokhumi on July 20 that the Russian capital city’s municipality will “cooperate with the Abkhaz leadership without any hesitation and fear as with an independent state,” Apsnipress news agency reported.

Luzhkov arrived in the breakaway Abkhaz capital on July 20. Abkhaz leader Sergey Bagapsh and Luzhkov participated in a groundbreaking ceremony of construction of the business-center “Moscow House” on a seaside of Sokhumi.

“Moscow is not afraid to lose its money in Sokhumi,” Luzhkov said.

President Saakashvili has warned for several times foreign investors to refrain from investing in Abkhazia.

Luzhkov also said that Abkhazia has perfect chances to become “a prosperous state.”

“We are assessing very different kind of scenarios. If we have decided to come here with investments, this means that we are sure that none of the external force will be able to hijack them [investments],” Luzhkov said.

Abkhaz leader Sergey Bagapsh noted that cooperation between Abkhazia and Moscow are moving from the humanitarian level to “the purely economic ties.”

“Abkhazia can no longer remain isolated and we should undertake all measure in order to make breakthrough from this besieged position,” Sergey Bagapsh said, according to the Apsnipress.

The Georgian side has yet to comment on this visit of the Moscow Mayor to breakaway Abkhazia, which was not prior agreed with Tbilisi.