Abkhazia, Unrecognized state, Democratisation, Sovereignty

Unrecognized states represent an interesting anomaly in the current international system which is based exclusively on the project of sovereign states. Although not internationally recognized, or only recognized by a few states, they are able to conduct a certain degree of administration over their territories for a relatively long time and according to the Freedom House Index, some of them have become more democratic in last few years. This is an important signal that international recognition is not necessary for the internal functioning of the state. Unrecognized states are generally striving for two things ? preserving their current de facto independence (status quo) and international recognition. According to the concept of earned sovereignty, which is one of the legitimisation strategies for the gain of independent statehood, the degree of democratic character of public administration and continuing democratisation is an important determinant in the effort to achieve international recognition. The goal of this paper is to analyse factors preventing the democratisation process in the specific environment of unrecognized states. The theoretical premises for democratisation will be applied to the specific case of an unrecognized state, which is Abkhazia.