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Georgian Foreign Minister Visits Moscow to Finalize Accord on Russian Bases Withdrawal







Zourabichvili: we do not need misunderstandings
in the process of pull out of the Russian bases.
Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili will meet her Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow on May 6 in an attempt to finalize a hand-shake agreement between the two Ministers reached in Russian capital last month over the withdrawal of Russian military bases from Georgia by the end of 2007.

If a final agreement is reached, the Georgian President will travel to Moscow on May 8-9 and formalize this accord by signing a formal treaty together with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Meanwhile, U.S. President George W. Bush told reporters from Europe ahead of his May 6-10 European trip that President Saakashvili asked him to raise the issue of withdrawal of Russian military bases from Georgia during his meeting with President Putin in Moscow on May 9.

“As to the bases, as I understand it, the government of Russia has made a statement that they’ll be out of the bases. And this is obviously an issue that needs to be resolved between Georgia and Russia,” Bush was quoted by Associated Press.

On April 25, the Georgian and Russian Foreign Ministers made a hand-shake agreement that Russia will launch a withdrawal of its bases from Batumi and Akhalkalaki in 2005 and finish the process by January 1, 2008.

But the recent statement of Russian Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov that Russia will need at least four years for this pull out triggered Tbilisi’s concerns that Moscow might not adhere to the April 25 hand-shake agreement between Zourabichvili and Lavrov.

Zourabichvili said in an interview with Rustavi 2 television on May 5 that she has to find out whether the statement made by the Russian Defense Minister “is an official position of Russia or not” during here visit to Moscow on May 6.

“Because it [four-year timeframe] was not the one agreed by us [Zourabichvili and Lavrov in Moscow on April 25],” the Georgian Foreign Minister said.
 
Zourabichvili also said that this agreement needs to be finalized in a formal treaty. “I am going to Moscow to agree on the details of the text [of the agreement]… because we do not need surprises,” she added.


She said that in the event that a final agreement is reached President Saakashvili will visit Moscow on May 8-9 and sign the document together with his Russian counterpart.


“But if there is no progress, there will be no need for a visit by the [Georgian] President [to Moscow],” Zourabichvili added.


She also stressed that the finalized agreement should outline in details the entire process of withdrawal, “as we do not need misunderstandings in the process of pull out [of the bases].”


The Georgian Foreign Minister said that closure of Russian bases by the end of 2007 is of vital importance for Georgia, as 2008 and 2009 are the years of parliamentary and presidential elections in Georgia respectively.


“It is clear that the issue of Russian military bases should not become a part of our [Georgian] election campaign,” Salome Zourabichvili said.

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)

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