After the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict of 1992–93, Ochamchire experienced a significant population decline due to ethnic cleansing of Georgians.

Ochamchire evolved as a town from a small maritime settlement, which was a scene of fighting between the Russians and Turkish-Abkhaz forces in 1877.

[8] After Aslan Bzhania met with Vladimir Putin in Moscow in October 2023, he told the newspaper Isvestiya that a treaty about the establishment of a Russian naval base in Ochamchire had been signed.

As the town is notionally in neutral Georgia, if the prospective base were to be built, it would be considered to be relatively safe from Ukrainian attacks.

[9][10] In January 2024, Russia signed an agreement with Abkhazia to host the Ochamchire Russian naval base.