Parliament Launches Hearings on Russian Peacekeepers

The Georgian Parliament will launch hearings on the performance of Russian peacekeeping troops in the South Ossetian conflict zone on February 15.

It is most likely that the Parliament will adopt a draft resolution to launch procedures for the withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers from the conflict zone.
 
Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Foreign Relations Kote Gabashvili said on February 15 that “a short” text of the draft resolution is already prepared and it “is mostly based on the Parliament’s resolution adopted on October 11, 2005.”
 
The October 11 resolution of the Georgian Parliament reads: “The Parliament of Georgia, in the event that the processes provided for in Paragraph 2 [to report Parliament on situation in S.Ossetia] are negatively assessed and no progress is witnessed, shall demand cessation of the peace-keeping operation on the territory of the former South Ossetian Autonomous District, as well as denunciation of the relevant international agreements and abolition of the existing structures starting from 15 February 2006.”
 
At committee hearings on February 13, top government officials described the Russian peacekeepers as ineffective.