TBILISI -- Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili says he held a series of "secret" meetings with authoritarian Belarusian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka in London to help persuade him not to follow Russia in recognizing the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
Speaking in court on February 9, Saakashvili said he had discussed the issue of recognizing the regions with Lukashenka in London on four different occasions. He did not say when exactly the meetings took place.
"I secretly met Lukashenka four times in London. This is the first time I am publicly talking about this. It was secret diplomacy. Lukashenka has not recognized South Ossetia and Abkhazia as a result of my trips to London," Saakashvili said.
Saakashvili, who served as Georgia's president from 2004 until 2013, is currently on trial on an embezzlement charge. He has also been charged with violently dispersing an anti-government rally in November 2007 and illegally crossing border. He has rejected the charges, calling them politically motivated.
SEE ALSO: Georgian Ex-President Returned To Prison, Prompting Concern From His LawyersMoscow recognized the two breakaway regions as independent states following the five-day Russian-Georgian war in August 2008. Since then, Russia has maintained troops in the two regions. Few other countries have followed Russia's path on the issue.
Earlier this week, Lukashenka said in a YouTube interview with pro-Kremlin reporter Vladimir Solovyov that he could recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states when "I understand the necessity of such a move."
Saakashvili's statement came a day before the start of 10-day Russian-Belarusian joint military maneuvers near Belarus's borders with Ukraine and NATO members Poland and Lithuania.
It also comes amid heightened tensions with the West over Moscow's troop buildup on its border with Ukraine, which has raised fears Russia may be planning an incursion into Ukraine.
Saakashvili, 54, has been in custody since October 1, when he was detained shortly after returning to Georgia from self-imposed exile.
He is serving a six-year sentence after being convicted in absentia of abuse of office. He maintains his innocence in the case and says it too was politically motivated.