PEACE & SECURITY | Creating a more stable world
14 August 2008
Rice Rejects Russian “Protector” Role in South Ossetia, Abkhazia
Moscow must honor pledge to end military operations, secretary says
Washington -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice rejected recent statements from senior Russian officials that they would serve as “protectors” of South Ossetia and Abkhazia ahead of international mediation or that Georgia should “forget” about both regions.
“There shouldn’t be any question about the territorial integrity of Georgia,” Rice said. “There will be a process for dealing with what has been a difficult conflict in South Ossetia and in Abkhazia, but it proceeds, of course, from U.N. Security Council resolutions.”
Russia has come under growing international pressure as its military operations expanded outside the separatist regions and deeper into Georgia despite an August 12 cease-fire brokered by French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Rice said Russia must honor its pledge to halt military operations in Georgia and underscored the importance of maintaining Georgia's territorial integrity.
“This is a member state of the United Nations whose internationally recognized boundaries have to be respected,” Rice told reporters August 14 following a meeting with Sarkozy and before leaving for Tbilisi, Georgia, to consult with Georgian officials.
Sarkozy, who is serving as the head of the European Union’s rotating presidency, briefed Rice on his recent shuttle-diplomacy missions to Moscow and Tbilisi.
The cease-fire plan’s conditions are: no use of force; a cessation of hostilities; open humanitarian corridors in the conflict zones; and Georgian and Russian troop withdrawal to their pre-conflict (August 6) positions. The accord permits Russian troops to act in a peacekeeping role in the separatist regions. But the status of the separatist regions -- South Ossetia and Abkhazia -- will be pursued in the future.
On August 13, President Bush announced the United States was dispatching Rice on a peace mission to Paris and Tbilisi and the U.S. military would lead a humanitarian aid mission to Georgia. (See “Russia Must End Military Assault in Georgia, Bush Says.”)
“We expect Russia to ensure that all lines of communication and transport, including seaports, airports, roads and airspace, remain open for the delivery of humanitarian assistance and for civilian transit,” Bush said. “We expect Russia to meet its commitment to cease all military activities in Georgia. And we expect all Russian forces that entered Georgia in recent days to withdraw from that country.”
After her Paris meetings, Rice will continue on to Tbilisi to meet with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili August 15 to underscore U.S. support for the South Caucasus nation. She is scheduled to return to the United States August 16 to brief the president.
“It is time for this crisis to be over,” Rice said. “Too many innocent people have died, and Georgia, whose territorial integrity and independence and sovereignty we fully respect, must be able to get back to normal life.”
A transcript of Rice's remarks is available on America.gov.
