Russia makes temporary concessions to Georgia in OSCE aerial surveillance programme

Due to strong international support for Georgia, Russia has agreed not to participate in unarmed surveillance flights over Georgia in 2019. However, Russia is expected to demand its right to participate in the flights after 2019.

The Organisation for Security and Co-Operation in Europe Open Skies treaty, which has been in force since 2002 with 34 participating states, establishes a programme of unarmed aerial surveillance flights over the territory of participant nations.

The aim of the treaty is to enhance mutual confidence and understanding by providing all participants a direct role in gathering information about military activities and forces of concern to them.

Open Skies is the largest international mechanism promoting transparency and openness in terms of military activities.

The Open Skies annual programmes distributes quotas and sets procedures for flights; it must be adopted by the consent of all 34 members.

Flights have not been carried out this year due to the disagreement between Georgia and Russia.

• Georgia and Russia have had controversies regarding the flights since 2010, given a clause which determines that "the flight path of an observation aircraft shall not be closer than... ten kilometres from the border with an adjacent State that is not a State Party."
• Russia refused to give permission to observation flights over its territory to fly within 10 kilometers of the occupied regions of Georgia, claiming that those regions are independent countries, which were non-parties to the treaty.
• In response, Georgia decided in 2012 not to allow observation flights on its territory that involved Russia and to not participate in observation flights on Russian territory.
• In 2012 Russia accepted not to participate in flights over Georgia and the Open Skies mechanism worked non-stop over the course of four years.
• In 2016 Russia again demanded the right to participate in flights over Georgia, but finally changed its decision and agreed to forego it’s demands.
• However, in 2018 Russia demanded again  the right to participate in flights over Georgian territory and Georgia responded that this could be allowed only if the issue of the Georgian occupied territories would be removed from the agenda.
• Russia did not accept, and due to a lack of unanimous consent on the Open Skies document flights have not  been carried out this year.