 In response to Russia's recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the Georgian government announced that the country cut all diplomatic relations with Russia.Russia had already closed its embassy right after the beginning of the war in South Ossetia in August 2008 before diplomatic relations between the two countries ended.Vladimir Putin visited Abkhazia on 25 August 2013 and met with his Abkhaz counterpart Alexander Ankvab to discuss bilateral collaboration, sparking protests from Georgia's government, which called the visit "another infringement on Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty."