The young soldier traced his finger across snow-capped mountains and dense forest to the point where he had shot down the Georgian spy plane.

“They are coming practically every day now, but this one was crossing our valley so we took it out,” said Alyas Tsardiya, nodding towards an artillery cannon. Then, to deafening effect, he fired a few rounds in the direction of Georgia.

This is the Kodori Gorge, the tense front line between Georgia and its breakaway region of Abkhazia, that is becoming a flashpoint in the relationship between Russia and the West. This little-known corner of the Caucasus is Dmitri Medvedev’s first big test as President of Russia.

Mr Tsardiya, 22, is the second generation of his family to take up arms in Abkhazia’s fight for independence from Georgia. His father, Zaur, died in 1993 in a war that broke out after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

At least 200,000 Georgians, more than half the population, were driven from their homes and have never returned. Abkhazia has remained an unrecognised state for 15 years.

The drone that Mr Tsardiya says he hit is one of seven that Abkhazia claims to have destroyed in the past month as evidence of Georgian plans for imminent invasion. Georgia denies any such intention and says that it has lost only one drone, shot down by a Russian fighter jet that it filmed violating its airspace.

Russia rejected the charge but has added hundreds of troops to a 2,500-strong peacekeeping force it maintains in Abkhazia, prompting Mikheil Saakashvili, the President of Georgia, to accuse Moscow of plotting an “act of annexation”.

Russia and Georgia have acknowledged that they are close to war, ringing alarm bells in the United States and European Union. Both support Georgia’s territorial integrity and President Bush phoned Mr Medvedev to raise concerns about Abkhazia on Monday.

With Georgia seeking membership of Nato and Sergei Bagapsh, the Abkhaz President, urging Russia to provide security guarantees by opening a military base, this “frozen conflict” is thawing rapidly into an international crisis.

Sukhumi, the capital, is a decayed Black Sea resort whose once-elegant promenade is lined with buildings shattered by the war. It is a scene repeated across Abkhazia, whose 180,000 residents live amid beguiling sub-tropical scenery and the ruined homes of former Georgian neighbours.

Sergei Shamba, the Foreign Minister, argues that Abkhazia was a victim of a century of Georgian attempts at assimilation. Officially, it is willing to discuss the return of refugees but ordinary Abkhazians seem hostile.

Mr Saakashvili has offered broad autonomy if Abkhazia reunites with Georgia. Mr Bagapsh, whose wife is Georgian, told The Times that a return to rule from Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, was “out of the question”.

Abkhazia wanted independence and had been encouraged by the international recognition of Kosovo. “If you look at the historical and legal aspects, then Abkhazia deserves independence far more than Kosovo does,” he said.

“If you allow me to compare, I would say that World War Two started with provocations. I am absolutely sure that if conflict starts here, it will consume the entire Caucasus.” Paradoxically he favoured Georgia’s entry into Nato, arguing that it would bring Abkhazia closer to Russia. Most Abkhazians have become Russian citizens and one of Vladimir Putin’s last acts as President was to sanction closer economic ties.

“The US and Nato have vital interests in Georgia, yet people are surprised that Russia wants to preserve its regional interests on the territory of Abkhazia,” Mr Bagapsh said. Any attempt by Georgia to drag Nato into the dispute would lead to war. “Even with the forces of Nato it will be impossible to force us to return to Georgia.

“They can destroy us, we understand that. If they could demolish Yugoslavia it would be much easier to deal with us, but for that you will have to completely annihilate the people. People should also remember that we are neighbours of Russia and have very good relations.”

Abkhazia relies heavily on visiting Russian tourists for income, though the numbers are a pale shadow of the millions who took holidays here during Soviet times.

The Times witnessed a convoy of Russian military fuel tankers en route to Sukhumi from the border crossing on the Psoi river. At an Abkhaz base near the Kodori Gorge troops took delivery of two trucks loaded with shells.

Alec Magomedov, 45, leads troops on patrol in the nearby hills in search of Georgian soldiers. The veteran of the 1993 war said: “When the snow melts in spring, we move deeper into the mountains and so do they. We watch them and they watch us. I’m not expecting a war but we’re ready.”

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