Translated material
Thanks Kushner
Georgian minister headed to Moscow
Tomorrow, Georgian State Minister for Reintegration Temuri Yakobashvili will arrive in Moscow. On Friday and Saturday he will hold meetings at the Russian Foreign Ministry and the State Duma. This is the first attempt by the Georgian side to start a dialogue with Moscow after the inauguration of the new Russian president . Mr. Yakobashvili’s department is involved in resolving conflicts on the territory of Georgia, which means that during the visit the problems of Abkhazia and South Ossetia will be discussed. “We no longer recognize Russia as a mediator, but as a party to conflicts. But even more so, we need to work with Moscow,” the Georgian minister of state told Vremya Novostey.Before his trip to Russia, Temuri Yakobashvili visited France. Returning to Tbilisi yesterday, he said that thanks to the efforts of Paris and personally the head of the French Foreign Ministry Bernard Kouchner, Georgia recently avoided “a serious military provocation, and the fact that we live peacefully today is also his merit.” According to the Rustavi-2 TV channel, French diplomacy allegedly demanded that Russia stop moving the additional contingent of Russian peacekeepers introduced into Abkhazia in the direction of the Kodori Gorge. This is the only region of Abkhazia controlled by Tbilisi, and there is a fairly large contingent of the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs there. The Russian and Georgian sides could be on the verge of an armed clash.
A high-ranking VN source in the Georgian government confirmed that Georgia will focus its efforts on the diplomatic front. According to him, Tbilisi will seek the deployment of European police forces into the conflict zone to protect the local population and returning refugees. However, Abkhazia is categorically against changing the current settlement format with the participation of Russia and its peacekeepers. Tbilisi is trying to persuade Sukhumi to make concessions. A few days ago, the Georgian permanent representative to the UN, Irakli Alasania, who enjoys the trust of the Abkhazians, visited the unrecognized republic on behalf of President Mikheil Saakashvili. The details of his negotiations with Abkhaz leaders are still kept secret.
Today, the UN General Assembly will consider a draft resolution dedicated to the issues of refugees and displaced persons from Abkhazia, prepared and introduced by the Georgian delegation. As the official representative of the Chairman of the General Assembly, Janos Tisovski, said, “the project will be considered under the 16th item on the agenda of the General Assembly on frozen conflicts in the GUAM countries (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Moldova) and their impact on international peace and security.”
Georgia insists it intends to resolve the conflict peacefully. However, 80-year-old ex-President Eduard Shevardnadze pointed out the possibility of forceful pressure on the separatists. “At this stage, a forceful solution is excluded, but if the issue is not resolved positively, then the conditions may be ripe for the use of force,” he told VN. “Nobody knows when they might ripen.” “It depends on the relationship between Russia and Georgia.”