OSCE creates group to focus on Georgia issues

The world’s largest security-oriented inter-governmental organisation that specialises in conflict prevention, crisis management and political negotiations is creating an in-house team to regularly discuss issues related to Georgia.

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) top official, Secretary General Lamberto Zannier announced this news while he met Georgia’s Minister of Defence Tinatin Khidasheli in Austria yesterday.

"We are trying to further deepen our cooperation,” the OSCE official said.

"A special group will be set up at the OSCE secretariat, which will discuss Georgia-related issues on a regular basis and this will remain top of the organisation’s agenda,” Zannier said.

The situation along the Administrative Boundary Lines (ABL) dividing Georgia’s breakaway Tskhinvali and Abkhazia regions from the rest of Georgia was the main topic of discussion at the meeting.

"Mr. Zannier is a long-time friend of Georgia. He frequently visits Georgia and does his best to make the OSCE as efficient as possible in our country, especially since Russia blocked OSCE missions to Abkhazia and so-called South Ossetia [Tskhinvali region],” Defence Minister Khidasheli said.

She added it was of utmost importance that leaders of all important international organisations - including the OSCE, NATO and the European Union – firmly stood beside Georgia.

Georgia's defence Minister Tinatin Khidasheli speaks at the Forum for Security and Co-operation. Photo by MOD.

While in Austria Khidasheli attended and spoke at the OSCE Forum for Security Co-operation. At the hall where Europe’s top human rights’ promoters were gathered, Khidasheli spoke about how parts of Georgia were occupied by Russia, and that Russia had ignored all basic human rights and international law, causing many issues for the Georgia people who lived in the occupied regions.