An examination of the Georgia versus Abkhazia case, this account explores how and to what extent the difference in status between a sovereign state and an unrecognized entity hinders conflict-resolution activities. Based on intensive fieldwork and unedited negotiation material, it provides an in-depth analysis of the negotiations, informal dialogues, and grassroots activities that took place in Georgia and Abkhazia between 1989 and 2008. Arguing that their strategies impeded progress in areas as diverse as the return of displaced people, the deployment of a UN peacekeeping operation in the early 1990s, and the implementation of confidence-building measures, this study also illustrates the consequences of lack of engagement with an unrecognized entity.