Reactions from Occupied Abkhazia, Tskhinvali Region to Ivanishvili’s Announced Intention to Apologize “to Ossetian Brothers and Sisters”

De-facto authorities in the Russia-occupied Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region have reacted to the ruling Georgian Dream leader Bidzina Ivanishvili’s statement which blamed the 2008 war on the “external forces” and the Georgian government of the time. Ivanishvili said the Georgian people “will find it in themselves to apologize.” De-facto Sokhumi authorities welcomed the statement “if it is supported with real steps,” while the occupation regime in Tskhinvali links it to Georgia’s upcoming Parliamentary elections.

A de-facto official from the occupied Tskhinvali region’s “presidential administration” Yuri Vazagov said that they expect “not only verbal declarations but also practical steps, including within the framework of the Geneva discussions, where the main issue remains achieving agreements on a legally binding document for security guarantees,” Jam-News reported on September 15.

“The independence of South Ossetia cannot be a subject of discussion. Regarding Bidzina Ivanishvili’s remarks, it should be noted that Georgia is currently in the midst of an election campaign. The competition between major political forces ahead of the parliamentary elections scheduled for October 26 has become quite intense,” he said, adding that “the tone of statements made by various political forces, and those that will be made, is directly related to the electoral cycle, and South Ossetia does not interfere in the domestic political processes of neighboring countries.”

The so-called opposition representative of the occupied region Atsamaz Bibilov, leader of the party United Ossetia said: “Georgia must acknowledge its guilt for starting the war and committing war crimes in South Ossetia; only then can we consider Georgian politicians’ apologies to be sincere.” He is also of the opinion that Ivanishvili’s promises are driven by pre-election campaign: “With elections approaching, the current government, represented by Georgian Dream, is making various statements about South Ossetia and Abkhazia. However, in practice, the Georgian side is taking no steps toward joint delimitation and demarcation of the South Ossetia-Georgia border.”

De-facto leader of the occupied Tskhinvali region during the Russia-Georgia 2008 war, former “president” Eduard Kokoity wrote that “if Georgia feels a sense of responsibility towards the Ossetian people, then the first thing Georgia should do is recognize the independence of South Ossetia, sign all necessary agreements to guarantee peace and prevent the resumption of hostilities…,” he also said Georgia should return what he called “Ossetian valleys occupied by Georgia” mentioning Truso and Mtiuleti Aragvi valleys in the north of Georgia, adjacent to the former S. Ossetian autonomous district.

According to him, “peace with Georgia must be on Russia’s terms, so that Georgia and other neighboring states of the South Caucasus can no longer jeopardize the peace and stability of the entire region for the sake of non-regional countries and military blocs.”

According to the September 16 statement by the de-facto foreign ministry of the Russia-occupied Abkhazia, “although this statement does not directly concern the Republic of Abkhazia, we want to note that such a statement, if it is supported by real steps towards reconciliation, based on reassessment of past mistakes and apologies to the peoples of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, abandonment of political and economic pressure methods, and the signing of a peace treaty, could become the beginning of a process leading to peaceful coexistence and good-neighborly relations.”

The de-facto Abkhazian authorities believe that the ruling Georgian Dream honorary chairman’s statement shows “that there is still a resource for internal reassessment and recognition of mistakes in Georgia.”

This article was updated at 13:15 on September 17 to reflect Kokoity’s comment.

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