S.Ossetia ‘Tangerine Affair’ Sparks Mutual Accusations
The Tbilisi-backed South Ossetian alternative authorities said they have launched the process of procuring tangerines from Ossetian merchants who failed to export their products to the Russian Federation.
Officials from the self-imposed alternative government said on January 11 that those willing to sell tangerines should apply and register before January 13.
About 60 trucks loaded with tangerines purchased in western Georgia by South Ossetian merchants with the intention to sell them in Russia were trapped at the border crossing point in Nizhniy Zaramag in Russia’s North Ossetia after being barred from entering the Russian Federation. A Russian ban on imports of Georgian agricultural products has been in force for over a year. The trucks were forced to return to South Ossetia on January 9.
The so-called alternative authorities in South Ossetia, which were installed in the Georgian villages of the breakaway region in November 2006, announced on January 10 that they would purchase the tangerines – a move which is believed to be part of their attempts to win the favor of South Ossetians.
Meanwhile, the secessionist authorities in Tskhinvali said on January 11 that tangerines are being purchased only from those Ossetian merchants who sign a petition condemning “the policy of the legitimate authorities of the South Ossetian Republic.”
The alternative authorities, based in the Georgian village of Kurta in the conflict zone, dismissed the allegation as “absurd.”
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