Austria-South Caucasus parliamentary friendship group visits administrative boundary line with occupied Tskhinvali

Members of the Austria-South Caucasus parliamentary friendship group, headed by chairman Andreas Minnich, visited parts of the administrative boundary line with Georgia’s Russian-occupied Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region on Monday.

Accompanied by the European Union Monitoring Mission deputy head Tibor Kozma, members visited the village of Didi Khurvaleti in the central Gori region, where they were briefed on the latest security developments along the line.

In the divided village of Didi Khurvaleti, the visitors saw how ongoing ‘borderisation’ activities and features, such as fences and watchtower, negatively affect the communities living along the ABL”, the EUMM noted.

The mission also said the briefing had focused on the restrictions caused by the process to the freedom of movement of the local population and subsequent challenges to access to education, healthcare, property and religious sites.

The EUMM is the only international monitoring mission deployed in Georgia to observe the areas affected by the 2008 Russia-Georgia war and the subsequent occupation.