EU ‘Concerned’ over Russia Base Plans in Abkhazia, S.Ossetia

The EU Czech Presidency said in a statement on February 6, that EU was “seriously concerned about the plans announced by the Russian Federation to build up its military presence in the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia without the consent of the Government of Georgia.”

“Among other things, this applies to Russian plans to construct a naval installation on the coast of Abkhazia,” the statement reads.

It said that EU would consider implementation of the plans as “a serious violation” of the Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“Any military build-up in Abkhazia and South Ossetia would be in contradiction with the spirit of the August and September 2008 ceasefire agreements and jeopardise stability and security in the region by further increasing tensions,” the statement says. “The EU expects Russia to act in a responsible manner and to continue to implement all its commitments. The EU also calls on Russia to use all relevant international fora, in particular the talks in Geneva, to discuss security matters.

NATO also said that it was watching reports about the Russian plans “both carefully and with concern, as they seem to be in violation of Georgia’s territorial integrity.” James Appathurai, the NATO spokesman, said that the Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, planned to raise the issue with Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov, at a meeting on the sideline of the Munich Security Conference this week.

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