Minister for Foreign Affairs of Abkhazia

The office of Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Abkhazia was created on 17 May 1993, during the 1992-1993 war with Georgia. Due to the diplomatic isolation of Abkhazia, which remains widely unrecognised, the role of the foreign minister has been restricted mostly to negotiations over resolving the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict.

On 30 April 1997, former Aidgylara Chairman Sergei Shamba was appointed Foreign Minister instead of Konstantin Ozgan, who had been appointed First Vice Premier, succeeding Sergei Bagapsh, who had been appointed Prime Minister on 29 April.

Shamba remained Foreign Minister until he resigned on 15 June 2004 along with First Vice Premier Astamur Tarba (who eventually stayed on) and Security Service Chairman Givi Agrba following the murder of opposition politician Garri Aiba. Shamba was temporarily replaced by his deputy Gueorgui Otyrba on 18 July, and permanently by Abkhazia's representative in Moscow Igor Akhba on 28 July. On 14 December 2004, following the Tangerine Revolution but while Vladislav Ardzinba was still President, he re-arranged the cabinet. Sergei Shamba was re-appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs and additionally became Vice-Premier.

After the election of Sergei Bagapsh as President, Foreign Minister Sergei Shamba was one of the few Ministers to be re-appointed, on 26 March 2005.

Following the re-election of Bagapsh, Shamba was appointed Prime Minister (as outgoing Prime Minister Alexander Ankvab had been elected Vice President), he was succeeded by his deputy Maxim Gvinjia on 26 February.