Translated material
"Clean Economy"
Moscow sent unarmed soldiers to Abkhazia
Before Moscow and Tbilisi had time to sum up the results of the UN Security Council meeting held on Friday (and in each of the capitals they interpreted its results in their own favor), the degree of confrontation between Georgia and Russia immediately rose to an extremely dangerous level. The reason for this was the announcement of the entry into Abkhazia on the evening of May 30 of units of the Russian railway troops. As stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the unrecognized republic, Sergei Shamba, “about 400 specialists from Russia will be engaged in the restoration of a number of sections of the railway on the territory of our republic.” “There is no need to look for any malicious intent in these actions,” Mr. Shamba noted. “This is pure economics.”This happened on the same day after a closed meeting of the UN Security Council dedicated to the situation in Georgia. No documents were officially adopted, but the United States and France supported the Georgians in their belief that a Georgian unmanned aircraft over Abkhazia was shot down by a Russian fighter. The majority of Security Council members recognized the need, as Russia demanded, to listen to the Abkhaz side. Moscow also demanded an additional investigation. But before these disputes had time to subside, a new discussion arose - about the railway.
General Director of the state company “Abkhaz Railways” Guram Gubaz explained that we are talking about the section from the capital Sukhumi to the city of Ochamchira: “Repair teams from Russia will change sleepers and improve the condition of the roadbed, and will also repair railway bridges across the mountain rivers Kodor and Mokva.” Guram Gubaz explained that the Russians plan to carry out restoration work in the eastern part of Abkhazia in two months, but he himself believes that this will take up to four months - “the condition of the railway track is so poor.”
The Russian Ministry of Defense explained that the restoration of the railway in Abkhazia is being carried out in accordance with “the decision of the President of Russia (ex-President Putin - Ed. ) to provide humanitarian assistance to the republic.” The department on Arbat Square emphasized that “units and special equipment of the railway troops” are being introduced into Abkhazia, and without weapons. The head of the Abkhaz Foreign Ministry, Sergei Shamba, confirmed that Sukhumi “appealed” to Moscow with a similar request, and “the introduction of Russian railway troops was planned.” On the same day, in an interview with the French newspaper Le Monde, Vladimir Putin himself, already as Prime Minister, casually confirmed the routine nature of this step: “...We (with the Abkhaz side. - Ed. ) have developed a whole plan for joint development work energy, cross-border cooperation, infrastructure construction, they decided to restore the railway.”
Speaking about these measures taken on the territory of Abkhazia without the consent of Georgia, the territorial integrity of which Moscow formally recognizes, Vladimir Putin did not even begin to justify them by the need to protect the interests of Russian citizens in Abkhazia, as was done in early May, when the decision was made to increase the Russian peacekeeping force contingent in the zone of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict. Apparently, such reasons seem obvious to Moscow, and it does not accept reproaches that these actions look like a de facto recognition of the sovereignty of Abkhazia.
Explaining the Russian position at length to French journalists, Prime Minister Putin spoke approvingly of the plan proposed by Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, providing for broad autonomy for Abkhazia within Georgia: “In general, this is a correct plan, but the other side needs to agree with this, a dialogue must be conducted. But I really hope that the plan proposed by Mikheil Saakashvili will nevertheless be gradually implemented.”
But neither Georgia nor its Western allies had time to appreciate the peacefulness demonstrated by the former president of Russia, and now its prime minister. Tbilisi perceived the introduction of Russian railway troops as “Russia’s preparation of infrastructure for military intervention in Abkhazia with the aim of annexing this part of Georgia.” Georgian Deputy Defense Minister Batu Kutelia, who said this, emphasized that “any such action by Russia, if it is not immediately stopped, will not remain without a tough response,” and placed responsibility on Moscow for the development of events. The reaction of Georgian State Minister for Reintegration Temuri Yakobashvili was categorical, declaring what was happening “an illegal movement of foreign troops across the territory of the Georgian state.”
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia Grigol Vashadze assessed the introduction of railway troops as “Russia strengthening its annexation of Abkhazia.” He accused Moscow of “introducing a military component of annexation, while previously trade, social, and legal components had already been introduced.” At the same time, he said, Russia “uses Goebbels’ style of propaganda”: “Russia has already introduced paratroopers, howitzers and anti-aircraft guns with a firing range of 50 kilometers and all this indicates military preparations.” Mr. Vashadze said that the Russian Ambassador to Tbilisi, Vyacheslav Kovalenko, had been summoned to the Georgian Foreign Ministry and would be presented with a note of protest.
Georgians were surprised that all this was happening a few days before the expected meeting of the presidents of Georgia and Russia within the framework of the informal CIS summit in St. Petersburg on June 6-7. “Apparently, Russia does not really want this meeting, since it resorts to such provocative steps before it,” Grigol Vashadze emphasized. So far, Moscow has not expressed any opinion regarding the prospects for the first meeting between Dmitry Medvedev and Mikheil Saakashvili. However, the fact that the top officials of both states have not yet entered into a fierce debate and that even the ministers of foreign affairs and defense are refraining from this indicates that there are still chances for a dialogue between the presidents.
Obviously, the United States and the European Union will push both sides towards dialogue. “The United States is alarmed by the Russian Ministry of Defense's announcement that it is sending additional military forces... without the approval of the Georgian government,” US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said in a statement released Saturday. “This decision is especially difficult to understand in light of the statement made by the Georgian side at the UN Security Council meeting on May 30 to cease flights of reconnaissance aircraft over the territory of Abkhazia, as well as in the light of the constructive efforts of President Mikheil Saakashvili and others to revive the peace process in Abkhazia.”
Yesterday, a delegation of EU ambassadors to Georgia, which visited Sukhumi and met there with all the leaders of the unrecognized republic, including Abkhaz President Sergei Bagapsh, called for the resumption of the Georgian-Abkhaz dialogue, interrupted two years ago. As the French Ambassador to Tbilisi, Eric Fournier, stated on their behalf, “the ambassadors firmly recorded in Sukhumi the EU’s position on the need to resume dialogue without any preconditions.” The ambassadors' trip is intended to pave the way for the visit of EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana to Tbilisi and Sukhumi on June 5-6. According to Vremya Novostei's diplomatic sources at EU headquarters, the situation in the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict zone will most likely be discussed at the initiative of the Europeans at the upcoming Russia-EU summit in Khanty-Mansiysk at the end of June. The tone of this discussion will largely depend on the results of the meeting between Saakashvili and Medvedev in the northern Russian capital. If it happens, of course.