Foreign Minister: War in Ukraine can be avoided

The international society must do everything they can to avoid war in Ukraine, says Georgia’ Foreign Minister Maia Panjikidze.

"There [are] still diplomatic resources which could save the Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, Georgia expresses full solidarity with Ukraine and [we] believe the military conflict can be avoid as the possibility for it still exists,” Panjikidze said.

Citing her phone conversation with Ukraine’s Foreign Minister yesterday, Panjikidze stressed the "Ukrainian people were against the military conflict and were afraid of war.”

Last night Panjikidze said war could be avoided and Georgia’s experience following the Georgia-Russia war in August 2008 was an example of this.

"Georgia’s experience is a good example how [to move forward in] the situation. During my phone conversation with my Ukrainian counterpart he highlighted that the conflict could be deescalated peacefully and with the methods of diplomacy,” she said.

She stressed Crimea was occupied by Russian military forces.

"The Ukraine Foreign Minister reaffirmed to me that different kinds of works have already launched in Crimea including infrastructural so the risk of further escalation has not been removed,” she said.

In response to a journalist’s question whether she planned to visit Ukraine, Panjikidze said: "anything could happen”.

"This kind of decision has not yet been made ... we are in collaboration with our European colleagues,” she added.

As for Georgia, Panjikidze highlighted that at her upcoming meeting with European Union Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Fule, expected to take place on March 4 in Tbilisi, she would raise the issue of Georgia’s future and ask the EU to provide a clear membership perspective either in the Association Agreement (AA) or in some other form.

Georgia initialled the AA with the EU last November and expected to sign the document by August this year. Even so, the document does not include a membership perspective - it only read the EU acknowledged "the European aspirations and European choice of Georgia.”