Italy denies agreeing with Tskhinvali

The Italian Foreign Affairs Ministry denies signing any kind of agreement with the Georgian breakaway region. 

The Ministry announced this after the controversy followed by the de facto South Ossetia Foreign Affairs Minister David Sanakoev's statement.

Sanakoev said the Italian town of Lanusei and Tskhinvali, South Ossetian capital, signed an economic-cultural partnership agreement on January 13. 

"The South Ossetian official delegation paid a visit to Italy at the beginning of the year. We met with the Senate representatives and other officials and public figures of the country,” Sanakoev said.

He claimed Italian politicians and businessmen were expected to visit South Ossetia "in the nearest future”.

The Georgian Foreign Affairs Minister tried to double-check the information. They summoned the Italy's Ambassador to Georgia in order to listen to his explanation. 

The Italian man was supposed to visit the Georgian Ministry tomorrow but the information had already been denied by his country. 

South Ossetian and Russian forces gained full de facto control of the Georgian Tskhinvali region after the 2008 Russian-Georgian war. Five countries - Russia, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Nauru and Tuvalu recognised South Ossetia's independence. However Georgia and the rest of the international community do not consider the existence of South Ossetia as a political entity. They consider Tskhinvali region to be occupied by the Russian army.