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| Saakashvili, Putin will meet for second time. |
Mikheil Saakashvili will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 3 to discuss, as Georgian Secretary of the National Security Council Gela Bezhuashvili put it, “a wide range of bilateral issues.” This will be the second meeting between the two presidents. A Cordial tone prevailed during the two executive heads’ inaugural talks, held in Moscow on February 11.
“I hope the positive stance, which prevails in the bilateral ties, will gain further momentum after talks with Vladimir Putin,” Mikheil Saakashvili said at a news briefing in Moscow on July 2.
Recently, three major issues have topped Russian-Georgian agenda: the increased tensions in breakaway South Ossetia; Russian military bases in Georgia, and the finalization of the framework agreement which is designed to shape the relations between the two countries in every aspect, including security and military issues.
Mutual accusations made by the Russian and Georgian Foreign Ministries over an “unconstructive stance” being taken towards South Ossetian issues have created an unfavorable background for the high-level talks.
Georgia refused to participate in scheduled sessions of the Joint Control Commission (JCC), which involves Georgian, South Ossetian, Russian and Russia’s North Ossetian sides, in Moscow on June 30-July 1, in response to the South Ossetian side’s refusal to release three Georgian security officials being detained in the breakaway region.
Talks within the frames of the JCC, which was set up in 1992 after a ceasefire between Georgian and South Ossetian troops was attained, were stalled further after the Georgian Foreign Ministry demanded Russia to replace its envoy to the commission, Ambassador Mikhail Maiorov.
In a statement issued on July 1 the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Georgian authorities of impeding the peace talks, which are aimed at defusing the “extremely tense situation” in the breakaway region.
“Moscow considers this position [by the Georgian side] unconstructive and it contradicts Tbilisi’s commitment to solve the South Ossetian conflict through political means and dialogue,” the Russian Foreign Ministry’s statement reads.
Georgia, for its part, considers the refusal by Russia to set up a joint checkpoint at the Roki pass an obstruction for the resolution of current problems faced in the region. This checkpoint, Georgian officials argue, will help prevent smuggling through the Russian-Georgian border at Roki, which links South Ossetia with its neighboring Russia’s North Ossetian Republic and currently lies under the control of the self-styled South Ossetian Republic.
The Georgian government has recently launched anti-smuggling measures in the areas adjacent to breakaway South Ossetia. These measures have triggered protests of the self-styled republic’s authorities. Smuggling is believed to be one of the most significant sources of incomes within the separatist province.
It is widely accepted, however, that Tbilisi’s attempts to curb smuggling will be doomed for failure as long as the Roki pass remains under full control of the South Ossetian de facto authorities.
Participating on the sidelines during the NATO Summit in Istanbul, Georgian President Saakashvili said that he foresees the future scenario in South Ossetia as resembling that which occurred in Adjara, when the ex-leader of the Autonomy was peacefully ousted in early May. The Georgian leadership thanked Russia for its “positive and constructive role” during the earlier developments in Adjara, but, political analysts say, Russia is taking a tougher stance in regards to the situation in South Ossetia.
The continued presence of Russia’s two military bases in Georgia, a problem that has remained unsolved for the past five years, is yet another factor that serves to weaken bilateral ties between Georgia and Russia. Saakashvili goes to Moscow armed with the backing he received during the recent NATO summit for his plan to remove the Russian military presence in Georgia in the quickest manner possible.
According to the final communiqué released by attendees of the summit, unless Russia withdraws from Moldova and Georgia, as provisioned for in the 1999 OSCE Istanbul treaty, NATO will consider itself free to increase its military presence in the Baltic countries; an action which is harshly opposed by Moscow.
Mikheil Saakashvili said on July 2 in Moscow that he will push the issue of setting up a joint Russian-Georgian anti-terrorist center in Georgia during his talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on July 3.
Georgia has recently proposed Russia to create a joint anti-terrorist center in exchange of withdrawal of the Russia’s two military bases from Georgia.
“The mandate of this anti-terrorist center would include fighting terrorism, preventing terrorism across the borders and in the region. Russian presence in Georgia in this way is absolutely acceptable for us,” Mikheil Saakashvili said at a news briefing n Moscow.
Disagreement persists over the framework agreement between Russia and Georgia, which was scheduled to be signed sometime in autumn during the initial February talks between the two heads of state.
Both sides admit that security-related issues are the reasons for the current controversy. Tbilisi opposes Moscow’s demand to include a provision in the agreement which will ban Georgia from accepting any foreign military base on its soil.
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