State Minister Meets Chief Russian Peacekeeper

Temur Iakobashvili, the Georgian state minister for conflict resolution issues, who visited the South Ossetian conflict zone on August 2, met the Russian commander of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces, Marat Kulakhmetov.

The meeting was also attended by Mamuka Kurashvili, a Georgian Defense Ministry official in charge of overseeing peacekeeping operations. Kurashvili, who said earlier on August 2 that he suspected the Russian peacekeepers were involved in shelling Georgian villages, said after the meeting that Russia’s North Ossetian peacekeeping battalion was involved.

Iakobashvili said after the meeting it seemed that the Russian peacekeepers were “just observing” as the sides engaged in shooting.

He also said that he had offered to meet the South Ossetian side, but the latter had rejected the offer.

“We have tried in vain today to hold talks with the separatists,” he said. “Negotiations have no alternative.”

Six people were killed and about 22 injured as a result of intense shooting in the conflict zone late on August 1 and overnight on August 2.