The delegation of South Ossetia in Geneva called on the participants in the discussions to pay serious attention to the situation resulting from the setting up of a fortified post by the Georgian side in the area of the South Ossetian village of Tsnelis (Uista).
This is stated in the message of the South Ossetian delegation to the media following the 52nd round of the Geneva discussions on security in Transcaucasia
Another round of international discussions on security in Transcaucasia took place at the Geneva Palace of Nations. It was attended by delegations from the Republic of South Ossetia, the Republic of Abkhazia, Georgia, the Russian Federation, the United States, as well as representatives of the EU, UN and OSCE. The South Ossetian delegation was headed by Presidential Plenipotentiary for Post-Conflict Settlement Murat Dzhioev.
The work took place in two working groups - on security and on humanitarian issues
In the first working group of discussions, held in accordance with the agreements of August 12 and September 8, 2008, a thorough exchange of views on security issues took place.
The main attention was paid to the issues of security and regional stability, in particular, the need to continue working towards the adoption of a legally binding document on the refusal to use force or the threat of force, which has international guarantees. The South Ossetian delegation gave a detailed rationale for the need to adopt such a document, which should become an important step to ensure durable security guarantees for South Ossetia and Abkhazia from Georgia and to strengthen the existing structure of regional security.
The South Ossetian delegation expressed serious concern over the expansion of NATO's presence in Georgia and the ongoing intensified build-up of the offensive potential of the Georgian armed forces, which could again provoke the Georgian authorities into new military adventures fraught with unpredictable consequences against neighboring states.
Discussing the issues of stability and security in the region of the South Ossetian-Georgian state border, the delegation of the Republic of South Ossetia urged to pay the most serious attention to the situation resulting from the setting up of a fortified post by the Georgian side in the area of the South Ossetian village of Tsnelis (Uista) on the territory of South Ossetia.
It was emphasized that this situation had an extremely negative impact on the general situation and the prospects for maintaining a stable and secure environment along the entire perimeter of the South Ossetian state border.
The meeting participants noted the absence of recent serious incidents in the areas adjacent to the state border, and called on representatives of the international community to exert appropriate influence on the Georgian authorities in order to start joint work on the delimitation and demarcation of the state border between the Republic of South Ossetia and Georgia.
Working under the IPRM
During the discussions, the effectiveness and expediency of continuing the operation of the mechanism for preventing and responding to incidents in the region of the South Ossetian-Georgian border (IPRM), acting within the framework of the Geneva Discussions, as an important factor in ensuring stability and security in the region of the Georgian-South Ossetian border, was noted. The effectiveness of the functioning of the IPRM hot line was emphasized.
Discussion of humanitarian problems took place in the second working group
As an important component of the overall security and humanitarian situation, a discussion was held on the issues related to the search for citizens of the Republic of South Ossetia abducted by the Georgian security forces and missing on the territory of Georgia. It was noted that resolving this issue would be an important step in the humanitarian dimension.
Once again, the most serious attention was drawn to the gross violations by Georgia of the rights of the Ossetians - natives of the historical part of Ossetia, which came under the jurisdiction of Georgia, who for several years have not been able to gain access to their ancestral villages.
Fighting the Spread of COVID-19
The South Ossetian participants have noted that the epidemiological situation for coronavirus in the Republic of South Ossetia is characterized as stable, there is a significant slowdown in the growth rate of the incidence.
The South Ossetian participants expressed gratitude to the Russian Federation for the assistance and support provided in the fight against the spread of coronavirus infection.
Discussion on the problem of refugees at the completed round was not held
The resumption of discussions on the topic of refugees will be possible if Georgia stops trying to artificially politicize this problem.
