IN GEORGIA

The French EU presidency said on October 3 it ”condemns the acts of violence which have taken place in recent days in Georgia, whether it be the murder of Georgian police officers or the bombing this afternoon in Tskhinvali which left several Russian victims.”

Seven Russian soldiers were killed and seven reportedly injured after a car bomb exploded outside the Russian military headquarters in the breakaway region’s capital on October 3. Three Georgian policemen were killed in September – two on the Abkhaz administrative border and another close to a Russian checkpoint in the village of Karaleti, a few kilometers from the South Ossetian administrative border.

The EU presidency said it hoped “light will be shed on these acts. All efforts must be made to preserve peace and security in the region,” AFP reported. The EU presidency also expressed its condolences to the families of “the victims and to the Georgian and Russian authorities.”

Civil Georgia

Georgia has accused Russia of being behind the explosion in Tskhinvali, which killed seven Russian soldiers on October 3.

“The Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs [MIA] believes that this was a provocation staged by the Russian special services, aimed at dragging out the withdrawal of Russian forces from areas adjacent to the conflict zone,” the MIA said in a statement on October 3.

Russia must pull out its troops from areas outside breakaway South Ossetia and Abkhazia by October 10, according to the terms of the agreement signed by the French and Russian presidents in Moscow on September 8.

Meanwhile, the Russian Ministry of Defense said on October 3 that the explosion in Tskhinvali was aimed at undermining the peace agreement.

Civil Georgia

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said the Ukrainian authorities may have delivered arms to Georgia during the recent war, which, he said, was “a criminal action.”

“I think that there could not be a greater crime against the Ukrainian and Russian peoples than arms deliveries to the conflict zone,” Putin said on October 2. “But we are mostly concerned with the possibility that military hardware was delivered during the hostilities and operated by Ukrainian specialists. If confirmed, it is a crime because it is nothing less than direct involvement in the armed conflict, playing off Russians against Ukrainians. This is simply dabbling in politics, which is irresponsible, harmful and criminal.”

Putin made his remarks at a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Yulia Timoshenko, in Moscow.

In response Timoshenko said that the trade in arms is controlled by the president and the National Security Council. “But at the same time, I believe we can only talk about such serious allegations if they are proven,” she added.

Civil Georgia

Two Georgian teenagers were injured in a mine explosion in Gori, Georgian media reported on October 3.

According to reports, the mine was triggered as the boys were collecting scrap metal. Both are said to be in a stable condition.

CIvil Georgia

It is too soon for NATO to provide Membership Action Plans (MAP) to Georgia and Ukraine, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in St. Petersburg on October 2.

NATO rejected Georgia’s bid for a MAP at its April summit in Bucharest, but gave temporizing assurance that it would become a member of the alliance in the future.

Merkel said at a joint press conference after talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that a NATO ministerial meeting in December would only provide “an initial evaluation on the road to MAP,” according to AFP.

“The position in favour of membership as soon as possible is not the German position,” Merkel said.

She added that a desire to join the bloc was not the only criterion for membership. “The German position has not changed since the Bucharest summit,” Merkel said.

Civil Georgia

German diplomat Hansjoerg Haber, the head of the EU Monitoring Mission (EUMM), said on October 2 that it would be unrealistic to expect Russian forces to grant the EU monitors access to breakaway South Ossetia in the near future.

The EUMM officially started patrols on October 1. The first patrols, each consisting of two vehicles, have already been conducted in Samegrelo and Shida Kartli regions.

Haber told Reuters that the ceasefire monitors would try to arrange with the South Ossetian police to make the de facto border more “porous” for trade, and to mediate between police on either side.

“We are a civilian, unarmed observer mission and we can only go where we are allowed to go,” the EUMM head said.

Civil Georgia

 German Chancellor Angela Merkel reiterated on October 2 that Russia’s actions during the August events were disproportionate, RIA Novosti news agency reported.

“We do not have similar points of view [with Russia]; we believe that Russia’s reaction in this conflict was disproportionate,” Merkel said in St. Petersburg after talks with President Medvedev. 

“Now, it is essential to build up confidence [between the sides],” she added.

The Russian and German leaders last met in mid-August in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi, where they discussed the situation around South Ossetia.

Civil Georgia

Parliament approved on October 2 a presidential decree prolonging the state of emergency in the areas currently occupied by Russian troops until October 17.

The state of emergency, which was already extended on September 18, was due to expire on October 3.

Parliamentary Chairman Davit Bakradze said he hoped this would be the last time Parliament had to extend the state of emergency, given the October 10 deadline for a Russian withdrawal from the areas adjacent to South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

Parliament has already approved “a law on occupied territories” with its first hearing, which provides for a legal replacement for the state of emergency.

Civil Georgia

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on October 1 that Russian forces would pull out from areas adjacent to Abkhazia and South Ossetia as agreed.

“The peacekeepers are working with the EU monitors over the issues of interaction and they will pull out from the territory of Georgia within the agreed terms,” Medvedev said.

He said that Russia had met all its commitments under the six-point ceasefire agreement.

“As far as the final phase is concerned, I have already spoken of this; we will do everything on time,” he added.

Russian troops are committed in the ceasefire agreement to withdrawing from the areas adjacent to South Ossetia and Abkhazia within 10 days of EU monitors being deployed there. EU monitors began patrolling on October 1.

Civil Georgia

The Georgian political system is now healthier than it ever was, with a vibrant parliament and consolidated government, President Saakashvili said on October 1.

“I do not remember Georgia having a healthier political system, than it has now,” Saakashvili told journalists. “Very interesting processes are ongoing in Parliament… and the government is consolidated and united.”

Civil Georgia