Georgia ‘Not to Revise’ Russia’s WTO Entry Terms
Georgia will not revise its demands over Russia’s WTO entry terms, Nino Kalandadze, the Georgian deputy foreign minister, said on June 13.
"There are some demands, which will not be revised by the Georgian side," she said at a news conference. "Our partners, including the United States, acknowledge that it is Georgia’s sovereign right to raise these demands, which concern transparency of border between Georgia and Russia – the issue, which has to be resolved between these two countries."
Last week an opposition politician Kakha Kukava of Free Georgia party alleged, that Georgia was dropping its objection to Russia’s WTO entry following a meeting between U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and President Saakashvili in Rome on June 1. Kukava’s remarks were extensively carried by the Russian news wires.
The Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister denied the allegation as groundless and said that Georgia’s demands "remain in force."
The third round of the Swiss-mediated Russia-Georgia talks over Moscow’s WTO entry terms was scheduled for June 2, but it was postponed because of, as officials put it, "technical reasons" after the request of the Swiss side, which acts as the mediator.
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