Переговоры в рамках женевских дискуссий

The delegations of South Ossetia, Abkhazia, and Russia at the 67th round of the International Discussions on Security and Stability in Transcaucasia (IDS) reiterated their demand that Georgia commit to the non-use of force and expressed serious concern over its intensified integration into the North Atlantic Alliance, which they viewed as a threat to regional stability.

The meetings were being held from June 30 to July 1 at the Palais des Nations of the UN Geneva Office, based on the Medvedev-Sarkozy Plan and the 2008 agreements.

Resuming the work on a document on the non-use of force is a key issue in the Geneva Discussions, and all participants recognize its importance. The UN Co-Chair Mohamed Khaled Khiari stated this during a press conference with journalists.

"This work must continue, and we discuss these issues at every round. The issue of resuming the work on the document has been discussed today and will be on the agenda of the 67th round," Khiari has emphasized.

The UN Co-Chair expressed hope for achieving "certain concrete results" on this issue.

Tskhinvali is alarmed by the resumption of kidnappings in Georgia, stated Konstantin Kochiev, head of the South Ossetian delegation and State Advisor to the President, during a meeting with the UN, OSCE, and EU Co-Chairs of the Geneva Discussions in Tskhinval.

"Student Tamaz Goloev, who was traveling to a neighboring state on business, was kidnapped, and we are very concerned about his fate. This is a very negative signal for our process, for discussions on security and stability in Transcaucasia," Kochiev said.

Security issues at the South Ossetian-Georgian border will be discussed on Thursday at the meeting within the framework of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM).

The key topic of discussion in Ergnet will once again be the removal of the Georgian police post from the South Ossetian village of Uista, set up in late August 2019.

The participants will also analyze the current border security situation and review statistics on violations recorded since the previous meeting.

South Ossetia continues active efforts to strengthen and develop its border with Georgia, despite the lack of progress in the negotiation process on this issue. This was stated by Yegor Kochiev, head of the South Ossetian delegation, while summing up the results of the latest meeting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM).

Security and the achievement of a legally binding agreement on the non-use of force with Georgia remain the key priorities for South Ossetia at the upcoming Geneva International Discussions.

This was stated by the Republic's Foreign Minister, Akhsar Dzhioev, commenting on Tskhinval's position ahead of the 66th round, which will take place on March 18-19.

According to the Minister, South Ossetia's position on these issues remains unchanged and will be reiterated at the meeting in Geneva.

The issue of non-use of force is one of the key issues on the agenda, the OSCE Co-Chair Christoph Shpeti stated at the briefing in Tskhinval.

According to him, the upcoming round of the Geneva Discussions will take place on March 18-19.

"In preparation for each round, we always visit the region. Today in Tskhinval, we have discussed in detail both the humanitarian issues and the security situation. In particular, we have considered the South Ossetian party's position on the non-use of force. We hope to see progress in the future," Shpeti has noted.

The main goal of the talks within the Geneva Discussions is to ensure lasting stability in the region. The EU Co-Chair Magdalena Grono stated this at the briefing in Tskhinval.

"As always, in preparation for the round, we thoroughly review all the have agenda items in both working groups.

Today, we thoroughly discussed the issues in each group, as well as individual topics that directly impact the lives of people in the region.

Our work is aimed at achieving key goals and ensuring the long-term stability," Grono has emphasized.

South Ossetia intends to focus on agreeing on a specific document on the non-use of force during the upcoming round of the International Security Discussions in the Transcaucasia. This was announced by Konstantin Kochiev, a head of the South Ossetian delegation and State Advisor to President, at the meeting with the international co-chairs in Tskhinval.

The meeting was held in preparation for the next round of negotiations.

Security issues in South Ossetia and Abkhazia were discussed at the meeting between Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and the co-chairs of the International Discussions on Security and Stability in Transcaucasia, the Russian Foreign Ministry press service reports.

"The exchange of views took place on the current topics of the Discussions in preparation for the next round, scheduled for March.