S.Ossetia Rejects Tbilisi-Proposed Venue for High-Level Talks

A meeting between South Ossetian leader Eduard Kokoity and President Saakashvili on ?Georgia?s territory? has been ruled out, South Ossetian deputy prime minister and chief negotiator Boris Chochiev said on October 28.

Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Nogaideli said while addressing the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on October 28 that President Saakashvili is ready to meet Kokoity at the Bakuriani ski resort in Georgia, which he described as ?home to thousands of Ossetians who for centuries have lived in peace and harmony with their neighbors? outside South Ossetia.

Georgian State Minister for Conflict Resolution Issues Merab Antadze met with Boris Chochiev in Tskhinvali on October 28, where he convoyed the Georgian authorities’ proposal.

But Chochiev said that PM Nogaideli?s statement about Bakuriani was ?cynical.?

?At least 1 000 Ossetians were forced to flee Bakuriani [in the early 90s] as a result of the Georgian authorities? policy and genocide against Ossetians,? Boris Chochiev said.

?In the current situation, which is a result of the Georgian authorities? policy, the Georgian territory as a venue for talks is categorically ruled out,? he added.

?If the Georgian authorities do not want to transform this major political event into a farce and another PR action, this meeting should be thoroughly prepared. It is necessary to hold a number of consultative meetings and define the format, venue and issues of the meeting,? Chochiev said.

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