Lavrov Calls on Tbilisi to Sign Treaty on Non-Use of Force

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has expressed concern over the current situation in breakaway South Ossetia and has called on the international community to convince Georgia to sign a legally binding treaty with Sokhumi and Tskhinvali on the non-use of force.

“We call for a halt to any provocations, any actions that may trigger further aggravation of the conflict,” Lavrov told Russian news agencies during a visit to Turkmenistan on July 4. “An obvious step [that would de-escalate tensions] would be the signing of a document on the non-use of force.”

He also said that Tbilisi’s public rhetoric was peaceful, but added that this rhetoric “by a strange combination of circumstances is accompanied by a sharp increase in tensions.”

Lavrov also said that he would not like certain progress observed in respect of Abkhazia “to be accompanied by an increase in tensions in South Ossetia.” It was not clear what he meant by "certain progress."

Sergey Shamba, the foreign minister of breakaway Abkhazia and UN Secretary General’s Special Representative in Georgia Jean Arnault met in Sokhumi on July 4 and discussed some of the initiatives laid out by the Group of Friends during a meting in Berlin.

Shamba said that some of the proposals were “unacceptable” and some “unrealizable.” He, however, also welcomed the discussions. Shamba declined to elaborate details of the proposals.