Tbilisi Lashes Out at Russian Peacekeepers in S.Ossetia

In a statement issued on June 16 the Georgian Ministry for Reintegration said Russian peacekeeping forces had an “inability” and “unwillingness” to prevent armed incidents in the South Ossetian conflict zone.

One died and four others were injured in the breakaway region’s capital, Tskhinvali as a result of a shootout between Georgian and South Ossetian forces overnight on June 14-15.

The Georgian State Ministry for Reintegration said in a statement on June 16 that “intensive fire” was opened by “the separatist regime’s armed formations” in the direction of the Georgian-controlled villages of Ergneti and Nikozi. “Houses have been damaged and the lifes of civilians were put in danger. The Georgian side was forced to respond with fire to protect the local population’s security,” the statement said.

Tskhinvali has accused the Georgian side of opening fire. Interfax news agency quoted the Russian command of the peacekeeping forces as saying that it was impossible to determine which sides opened fire first. It said the incident lasted for about an hour and a half.

“This recent incident,” the Georgian ministry’s statement reads, “as well as others, has once again demonstrated the Russian peacekeepers’ inability and unwillingness to perform their peacekeeping mandate, especially in terms of preventing armed incidents, which is their major duty in the conflict zone… It is obvious that the existing peacekeeping mechanism does not work and the recent incidents [in the conflict zone] are a result of their [peacekeeping forces’] inactivity.”

“The Russian peacekeeping forces are not fulfilling their major duty – disarmament of the separatist regime’s illegal armed formations; the prevention of arms smuggling from the Russian Federation.”

Joint Peacekeeping Forces in the South Ossetian conflict zone are made up of three battalions – one Georgian, another Russian and the third composed of Ossetian servicemen, formally from Russia’s North Ossetian Republic. All three battalions are formally under Russian command.