OSCE conference discusses Russian occupation of Georgian territories

During the past several weeks Russia advanced more than two kilometres into Georgian territory. Photo by Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
Agenda.ge, 29 Jun 2017 - 16:32, Tbilisi,Georgia

Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani spoke about the results of the 2008 Russia-Georgia war at the OSCE’s 2017 Annual Security Review Conference in Vienna, Austria yesterday.

He described in detail the difficult humanitarian situation in the two Russian-occupied regions of Georgia – Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region (South Ossetia).

Zalkaliani said that the barbed-wire fence erected by the occupation force along the administrative boundary line between the breakaway regions and the rest of Georgia affects the everyday lives of local residents. He added that these artificial barriers violate the fundamental human rights of people residing in the area.

Zalkaliani added that by these steps, Russia is trying to destabilize the situation not only in Georgia but in the region as a whole, which poses a threat to European security.

At the event, representatives of OSCE member states made strong statements in support of Georgia. Such statements were made by the United States, Ukraine, Turkey, Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Moldova.

In their statements they urged Russia to respect Georgia’s sovereignty and international law.