Ethnic Cleansing

…With regard to allegations of ethnic cleansing committed by South Ossetian forces or irregular armed groups, however, the Mission found patterns of forced displacements of ethnic Georgians who had remained in their homes after the onset of hostilities. In addition, there was evidence of systematic looting and destruction of ethnic Georgian villages in South Ossetia. Consequently, several elements suggest the conclusion that ethnic cleansing was indeed practised against ethnic Georgians in South Ossetia both during and after the August 2008 conflict…

EU-sponsored report in full [2.91MB]

The Conflict in Georgia in August 2008

…As far as Russian and South Ossetian accusations of genocide are concerned, they became less frequent in later months as the alleged Georgian intent for genocide could not be proven. The number of casualties among the Ossetian civilian population turned out to be much lower than claimed at the beginning. Russian officials stated initially that about 2 000 civilians had been killed in South Ossetia by the Georgian forces, but later on the number of overall South Ossetian civilian losses of the August 2008 conflict was reduced to 162. On 10 August, the Georgian Government declared a unilateral ceasefire and its intention to withdraw Georgian forces from South Ossetia. This ceasefire, however, was not followed by the opposite side. Finally, by the night of 10 to 11 August, most of the Georgian forces had withdrawn from the territory of South Ossetia. They were followed by Russian troops who entered deeper into Georgian territory by crossing the administrative boundaries of both South Ossetia and Abkhazia and set up military positions in a number of Georgian towns, including Gori, Zugdidi, Senaki and Poti…

…As will be shown later, in the case of the conflict in August 2008 and the ensuing recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, the Mission has found that genocide did not take place…

EU-sponsored report in full [2.91MB]

Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Conflict in Georgia

Introduction

On the night of 7 to 8 August 2008, after an extended period of ever-mounting tensions and incidents, heavy fighting erupted in and around the town of Tskhinvali in South Ossetia. The fighting, which soon extended to other parts of Georgia, lasted for five days. In many places throughout the country it caused serious destruction, reaching levels of utter devastation in a number of towns and villages. Human losses were substantial. At the end, the Georgian side claimed losses of 170 servicemen, 14 policemen and 228 civilians killed and 1 747 persons wounded. The Russian side claimed losses of 67 servicemen killed and 283 wounded. The South Ossetians spoke of 365 persons killed, which probably included both servicemen and civilians. Altogether about 850 persons lost their lives, not to mention those who were wounded, who went missing, or the far more than 100 000 civilians who fled their homes. Around 35 000 still have not been able to return to their homes. The fighting did not end the political conflict nor were any of the issues that lay beneath it resolved. Tensions still continue. The political situation after the end of fighting turned out to be no easier and in some respects even more difficult than before…

EU-sponsored report in full [2.91MB]

Report by the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Conflict in Georgia

EU-sponsored report in full [2.91MB]

EU-Backed Report To Split Blame For Russian-Georgia War

A long-awaited report on the causes of the five-day war between Russia and Georgia in August 2008 will split the blame between the two sides, according to EU officials familiar with the document.

The EU’s Special Representative for the South Caucasus, Peter Semneby, told RFE/RL that he believed the document — which he said he had not seen yet — contains nothing “fundamentally” new.

Officials in Brussels are acutely aware of the risks of alienating either Moscow, a key energy supplier whose cooperation is desired in a host of areas, or Tbilisi, whose political standing took a beating over the 2008 conflict despite broad Western support for its aims of keeping Georgian territory intact.

Temur Iakobashvili briefed on Tagliavini report

Temur Iakobashvili, State Minister of Georgia for Reintegration Issues held a press conference today to address the report of Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the conflict in Georgia, led by a Swiss diplomat Heidi Tagliavini.

Temur Iakobashvili said, the Georgian side has not yet been fully acquainted with the document, but partially. The document reports that the war didn’t start on August 7 or 8. It was a culmination of a long-lasting military provocation.

Russia had no right to intrude on Georgia’s territory and no genocide of Ossetian people was committed on part of the Georgian side, Iakobashvili stated based on the report.

US reiterates support to Georgia

US State Department spokesman, Ian Kelly has said the position of the United States regarding the Georgia and Ukraine`s integration into the NATO was unchanged. Any country has a right to choose which bloc to join or to have ties,` Ian Kelly announced at the foreign media centre, while commenting on the meeting of the NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and president Obama. In addition, Ian Kelly reiterated the support of the US government to Georgia`s territorial integrity and said that the United States would do its best to facilitate imposition of peace in the region by intensifying consultations within the Geneva format of international talks.

Separatists mark 16-th anniversary of “independence”

Abkhaz separatists mark the sixteenth anniversary of the independence and victory over Georgia. The representatives of the puppet regime will soon lay wreaths on the memorial of war victims in the centre of Sokhumi and then watch the parade of the units of the so-called defence forces. Separatist leader, Sergey Baghapsh has already congratulated his people on the `independence day`. Baghapsh arrived in Tkvarcheli region and addressed locals. Regarding the day, the separatists have decorated officers and soldiers, who participated in the occupation of the Kodory Valley with special awards. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov plans to arrive in Sokhumi in a few days.

Russian media qualified PACE resolution as “anti-Russian”

“Anti-Russian Resolution”- this is how the Russian media has qualified the resolution adopted by the parliamentary assembly of the Council of Europe yesterday. In addition, the Russian delegation accused the European MPs of ignoring the new reality in Europe, meaning the appearance of `two independent republics` in the Caucasus.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted the third resolution yesterday,which gave a deadline until January 25, 2010, to fulfil the obligations stipulated in two previous resolutions of the organization. The head of the Russian delegation, Konstantin Kosachov accused European diplomats of incompetence. He said the resolution was prepared so that not a single representative of the CoE arrived and monitored situation in the conflict areas. The narrator of a report broadcast on Russian state TV said the last night debates were tied with the report of the EU investigation commission headed by Heidi Tagliavini. The commission is expected to release the report today. Russians hope the document will be acceptable for Russia.
The international commission had been investigating the beginning of the Georgia-Russia war of August 2008.

PACE adopts third resolution on Georgia-Russia tension

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has adopted the third resolution, which urges Russia to fulfil the obligations stipulated in the two previous resolutions of the CoE. The resolution approved by the majority of the PACE MPs yesterday urges Russia to retract its recognition of Georgia`s breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia and to allow international observers into the occupied regions. The discussion of the resolution lasted more than an hour, which was preceded by sharp debates between Georgian and Russian delegations. However, none of the demands of the Russian MPs to amend the text of the resolution was approved.

Senator Lugar Says West Should Support NATO Expansion

The West must hold up the prospect of membership to qualified aspirant countries,` US Senator Richard Lugar said in his speech at the North Atlantic Council yesterday, meaning the aspiration of Georgia and Ukraine to join the alliance – Rustavi2 reports. The Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee of the United States Senate said the Eastern European Countries remained the guarantee of stability in Europe for NATO. `The accession of more confident, prosperous Eastern European countries to NATO has been an indispensible element of European stability during the last two decades. We must not repeat the folly of the early days of the Cold War, when the appearance of a rigid U.S.-drawn defense perimeter in the Far East invited the perception that we would abide any geopolitical upheaval behind that line. The West must hold out the prospect of membership to qualified aspirant countries, including Ukraine, Georgia, and the entire Balkan region,` Senator announced. The Atlantic Council invited the US senator to present his vision of NATO expansion before the speech of the NATO Secretary General Ander Fogh Rasmussen. When questioned by the RUstavi2 about the prospect of Georgia`s membership in the alliance, the US Senator answered that reforms for the development of democracy in Georgia should continue.

Hans Joerg Haber – Russia Must not Count on EU for Recognition of Abkhazia and So called South Ossetia

EU will not recognized Abkhazian and so called South Ossetian independence and Russia must not count for it. ead of the EU monitoring mission in Georgia Hans Joerg Haber told ‘Vremia Novostei’ about it. He says that he himself doesn’t expect from Russia to reverse recognition of the breakaway regions of Georgia. Haber states that EU helps Georgia to become attractive country for its citizens, for the civil population of Abkhazia and the so called South Ossetia. ‘Georgia has a chance today to win over civil population of Abkhazia and South Ossetia and improve relations with de-facto leadership. Our vision concurs with that of US position, what was corroborated by US Vice-president Joseph Biden on his visit to Tbilisi’, – head of the mission stated.

Political Debates Between Georgian and Russian Delegations Ended in Council of Europe

Georgian-Russian debates are over on the parliamentary assembly of Council of Europe today. Member of Georgian delegation, MP Petre Tsiskarishvili stated on the assembly session that Georgian government supports dialogue. ‘Nobody is against dialogue. Georgian government also supports dialogue. The fact is that situation in Georgia has deteriorated after war. Russian officials state that they don’t consider necessary to follow commitments and demands of international commonwealth. They don’t’ intend to return refugees, don’t let international observers, security is not protected’, – Petre Tsiskarishvili stated. One more member of Georgian delegation, MP Akaki Minashvili accused Russia not only in indifference towards other nations, but to their population. ‘Russia is a corrupt country, journalists are assassinated there, and they left their ship under sea. You don’t care of your population and how can you be afflicted by fate of other people’, – Akaki Minashvili stated. Parliamentary assembly of council of Europe will draft resolution on Russian-Georgian war by the end of the day.

Government works to put the economic reforms within the legislative frames

Georgian Prime Minister Nika Gilauri says Georgian government now works to place the economic reforms within the legislative frames. Gilauri held consultations with Georgian lawmakers in parliament today.
`The government is working on the legislative amendments. We see growth of economic activity, flow of investors. We want the reforms, which are underway at present, become irreversible. These reforms are topical for investors. That`s why we decided to put these reforms within the legislative frames,` Prime Minister said.
Gilauri promised to present the aforementioned amendments and detailed numbers within the next two weeks.
`With this we make another step for becoming a reformer government in the country,` Prime Minister said.

Nonstop rains cause flood in Poti

Two week long non-stop rains have caused flood in the city of Poti. The streets of the city are completely flooded. The water has damaged the ground floors and the basements of the houses, agricultural lands have been also flooded. It is impossible to walk in the city due to the flood. The disaster has also halted the traffic.
Municipal officials say all five pumps work to pump the water, however, the heavy rains hinders its operation.
The situation is similar in the village of Chaladidi, a nearby village.

Speaker hails PACE president`s statement

Parliament speaker Davit Bakradze hopes that Georgian delegation`s visit to Strasburg will be as successful as it was during the previous visit. Davit Bakradze responded to the statement by the PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig, who told media earlier today that Russian leaders refused to meet with Saakashvili. Davit Bakradze addressed the MPs at the session of the parliament bureau today and thanked Mr. Lluís Maria de Puig for his `sincere` statement about Georgia. Bakradze reiterated that Georgia was always prepared for dialogue in accordance with the terms set by the Council of Europe. `The Council of Europe adopted several resolutions last year, in which the terms of the dialogue were stipulated. These terms were de-occupation of Georgian territory, repatriation of IDPs and nullification of the recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Unfortunately, as president de Puig has confirmed, Russia was not prepared for dialogue of the kind. Their refusal confirms that they are not prepared for dialogue not only with Georgia, but with anyone. Russia moves against the flow of international politics,` Davit Bakradze said.

WSJ-Georgia War Report Set to Blame Both Moscow and Tbilisi

The Wall Street Journal has published an article prior to the publication of the international commission investigating the beginning of the Georgia-Russia Waugust war. The article says that the report will blame both Georgia and Russia for beginning the conflict in the South Ossetia region. `An international report to be released Wednesday on last year`s war between Russia and Georgia will place responsibility for the conflict on both countries, according to a person close to the Geneva-based fact-finding mission. While the Cold War-level tensions between Russia and the West that blew up after Moscow`s first post-Soviet invasion of a neighboring state have calmed since the August 2008 conflict, the stakes in the detailed findings of the 900-page report remain high for all sides, diplomats and analysts say.

Human Rights Watch slams Russia for ignoring Strasburg court rulings

Human Rights Watch accuses Russia of ignoring the rulings of the Strasburg Human Rights Court in the special report, which the international organization has published on its web site. `The European Court of Human Rights (European Court, the court) has issued 115 judgments to date on cases concerning serious human rights violations in Chechnya. In nearly all cases, the court has held Russia responsible for enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions, torture, and for failing to properly investigate these crimes. Following a judgment, Russia has an obligation not only to pay the monetary compensation and legal fees awarded by the court, but also to implement measures in each individual case to rectify the violations, as well as adopt policy and legal changes (also known as general measures) to prevent similar violations from recurring. Russia generally has paid the compensation and legal fees mandated in European Court rulings on Chechnya in a timely manner. However, it has failed to meaningfully implement the core of the judgments: it has failed to ensure effective investigations and hold perpetrators accountable,` the report says.

Russia sends more boats to control Abkhazian waters

Russia will send more boats to Georgia`s breakaway Abkhazia to reinforce control of its waters. Reportedly, Russia will send ten modern boats after the Novorossiysk, which has been patrolling there since last week. Russian weekly analytical program has aired a special story about the Russian plans in Abkhazia. The narrator said Russia would staff a special division for Abkhazia and the goal of its work will be to detain Georgian ships, whom they accuse of piracy. Abkhazian separatist leader says Abkhazian coast guards will now resist to the attempts of Georgian Navy to detain foreign tankers sailing to Abkhazia.

Russian leaders refuse to meet Saakashvili in CoE

`The Russian leaders have refused to meet with Georgian president at the parliamentary assembly of the Council of Europe,` Lluís Maria de Puig, the president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, announced today. The PACE president said he had held meetings with Georgian president during his visit to Tbilisi and with Russian PM and the president, while visiting Moscow and proposed them all to meet with each other in Strasburg. `Saakashvili has never rejected the offer on dialogue and we have seen his numerous speeches from the CoE rostrum. Russian leaders have never spoken from this tribune and they even refuse to arrive here,` Lluís Maria de Puig said. Georgian and Russian delegations will debate on the situation in Georgia tomorrow.