International observers leave Georgia borders
Tue 30 Jun 2009
Today monitors from the United Nations (UN) and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) are leaving Georgia after Russia vetoed an extension of both mandates to observe the cease-fire that ended last year's war. This leaves only a tiny group of EU observers on Georgia’s territories, though they have been blocked from travelling to Georgia’s rebel regions South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The West has already expressed its fears that the pull-out of Western observers could contribute to the eruption of a new war on the Caucasus.
After a mission of 17 year, OSCE spokeswoman Martha Freeman said the organisation's 20 observers packed up their post near the region of South Ossetia today. The withdrawal follows Russia's refusal last year to agree to extend the mission's mandate because other OSCE members refused to recognize South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent nations. Russia and Nicaragua are the only nations to recognise the two regions as independent.
Meanwhile, UN observers were also scheduled to begin withdrawing from Abkhazia today, ending a 16-year mission there, which mandate expires 16 July. That follows Russia's recent veto of a UN Security Council resolution that would have extended that mission.
On Monday, Russia began large-scale military exercises in the regions just over the border from Georgia. The Caucasus 2009 war games are being seen by many experts as a direct threat to Georgia. According to International Crisis Group (ICG), an NGO committed to preventing and resolving deadly conflict, “due to the absence of security structures, violent confrontations could erupt in the zone of conflict as well as in the surrounding areas”. Ambassador Terhi Hakala, Head of the OSCE Mission to Georgia, supported ICG’s conclusions, and added that the situation in the conflict zones “is far from stable”.
Sources: Kommersant; Atlantic Council
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