Abstract. The article examines the background, causes and initial stage of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict, tied to the aggressive expansionist policy of the authorities of the Georgian Democratic Republic during the period of independence – 1918-1921, and the Russian Civil War. Particular attention is paid to the negotiations between the Georgian and Abkhaz Soviets, the positions of the parties prior to the declaration of independence, and their changes after the creation of separate Transcaucasian republics. The agreements concluded between the Georgian and Abkhaz political elites in 1918 are analyzed in detail. The military and political actions of the Georgian authorities toward Abkhazia, leading to the latter's occupation, are highlighted and listed. The influence of external factors on Georgian-Abkhaz relations at that time is also examined. It was these years (1918-1921), right up to the Sovietization of Transcaucasia and the formation of the Transcaucasian Soviet Socialist Republic, that became the fundamental stage in the periodization of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict, the hot phase of which we saw in the 1990s, and the echoes of which we are already observing in the 21st century.