U.S. Welcomes EU Decisions on Georgia

The White House said in a statement that the EU extraordinary summit in Brussels “demonstrates that Europe and the United States are united in standing firm behind Georgia’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and reconstruction.”

“We agree with the EU that the six-point ceasefire agreement must be fully implemented, and echo the EU’s call for military forces to withdraw to the lines held prior to the outbreak of hostilities,” the White House said on September 1. “We agree with the EU on the importance of finalizing the international monitoring mechanism called for in point 5 of the agreement and thereby replace the Russian "additional security measures" in the area adjacent to South Ossetia.”

It also said that the United States was joining EU calls for other states not to recognize Georgia’s two breakaway regions.