Boris Chochiev, the Special Representative for Post-Conflict Settlement, reported to media on the results of the 9th round of Geneva talks held on 28 January. According to him, Geneva participants had discussed issues, which were already on the agenda: "This is the question on non-use of force against South Ossetia and Abkhazia in accordance with Sarkozy-Medvedev agreements. Another important topic was the fate of missing South Ossetian citizens. We also discussed the resumption of natural gas to Leningor district tackled in the second working group dealing with humanitarian issues, including that of refugee return. The resumption of Incident Prevention Mechanism (IPRM) meetings was also touched upon. We have refused to participate in the IPRM before the Georgian authorities provide us with information on our abducted citizens".
The Special Representative stated that the South Ossetian delegation convinced the Co-Chairs of the Discussions – the EU, OSCE and UN, as well as the delegations of the United States and Georgia, that the Geneva Discussions reached the deadlock. He stressed that the Co-Chairs tend to disperse the crucial issue for South Ossetia – the non-use of force paper, by inventing some problems.
"The last version of the agreement that we have received before this round of discussions envisages cross-border activities of various international agencies' working groups on the territory of South Ossetia. Here, our border is mentioned as an administrative boundary line, not as a state border. We have stated that South Ossetia is internationally recognized state. None of the issues related to the visits to our territory could be considered without authorization from the South Ossetian authorities", said Chochiev. According to him, a generalized version of the agreement does not take into account the interests of South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Russia. The Special Representative pointed to the fact that the EU, OSCE and UN Co-Chairs through the 18 months did not facilitate and decision that would contribute to stability in South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
"The Geneva Discussions do not reflect the existing realities, and we stated that if it continued like this, we would not participate in the talks", said Chochiev. Reflecting on resumption of gas supply to Leningor district, the Special Representative stressed that the Co-Chairs of the Geneva Discussions linked this problem to the resumption of irrigation water supply from South Ossetia to Georgia. As to refugee return, according to Chochiev, the priority for South Ossetia is the non-use of force paper and once it is signed, it would be possible to consider humanitarian issues, including that of refugees. In general, "the participation in the Geneva Discussions does more harm than it brings benefit for South Ossetia ", stressed Chochiev. "If at the 10th round of the discussions there no major breakthroughs, South Ossetia would be seeking for other working formats at international level. This work has already started", stated the Special Representative.
