 Both Abkhazian and Russian officials announced intentions to exploit Abkhazia's facilities and resources for the Olympic construction projects in Sochi in the run-up to that city hosting the 2014 Winter Olympics.The government of Georgia warned against such actions, however, and threatened to ask foreign banks to close the accounts of Russian companies and of individuals buying assets in Abkhazia.The CIS economic sanctions imposed on Abkhazia in 1996 formally remain in force, although Russia announced on 6 March 2008 that it would no longer participate in them, declaring them "outdated, impeding the socio-economic development of the region, and causing unjustified hardship for the people of Abkhazia".