Russia Wants Abkhaz Side to Voice Position at UN

The Russian Foreign Ministry condemned Georgian Parliamentary Chairperson Nino Burjanadze?s July 11 address to the UN Security Council as ?unprecedented rude anti-Russian? full of ?direct diatribes? against Russia and its peacekeeping troops stationed in the conflict zone under the CIS aegis.

The Russian Foreign Ministry?s spokesman Mikhail Kaminin said that the Abkhaz side should also have a right to address the UN Security Council so that the latter could have a chance to listen another side of the conflict as well.

The Russian Foreign Ministry?s spokesman Mikhail Kaminin noted that although it was a close-door session of the UN Security Council, content of Nino Burjanadze?s speech was expensively reported by the media sources and ?it seems that it was the very same purpose of the Georgian side.?

Nino Burjanadze unleashed harsh criticism towards Russia for backing secessionist authorities. She said that Russian peacekeepers have failed to perform their duties in the Abkhazia conflict zone and called for the UN-led peacekeeping operation there. She also noted that the Russian peacekeepers are in fact responsible for 10% of all crimes in Abkhazia. Burjanadze also accused Russia of arming secessionist authorities.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has also recalled a recent resolution of the UN Security Council which says that Russian peacekeeping troops play an important stabilizing role in the conflict zone. Kaminin said that targeting this ?important element of stability? will undermine peace process.

?Unfortunately, the attempts to cast the blame on Russia for this unsettled conflict have become a method, which is frequently used by Georgian politicians recently. This aims at avoiding the responsibility for tensions in the conflict zone, which were launched as a result of armed actions by the Georgian side in 1992. It seems that Tbilisi does not want to agree with the Abkhaz side on the measures on confidence building, and first of all, on non-resumption of hostilities. Moreover, all this happens against the background of continuing armament of Georgia,? Kaminin said.

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