Georgia, U.S. Call for Extension of OSCE Border Operation

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said in his remarks to the Ministerial Council of OSCE in Sofia on December 7 that the OSCE Border Monitoring Operation (BMO) in Georgia ?should be extended.?

?In Georgia, the OSCE?s Border Monitoring Operation is contributing to stability on a sensitive border, and its mandate should be extended for another year. We all need to make sure that the missions have the support and the resources necessary to do their jobs,? Colin Powell said.

Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili, who is participating in the OSCE Ministerial Council session in Sofia, also called for an extension of the OSCE Border Monitoring Operation on December 6.

?We strongly believe that the OSCE Border Monitoring Operation in Georgia is one of the most successful missions of our Organization, simultaneously making a tremendous contribution to Georgia’s border security at the most volatile and controversial segments of the Georgian-Russian border. Therefore, we strongly support the BMO?s extension for the sake of peace and stability in the region,? Salome Zourabichvili said.

Up to 150 unarmed observers from OSCE member countries conduct round-the-clock foot, air and vehicle monitoring procedures along the 280 km Daghestani, Chechen and Ingush sections of the Russian-Georgian border, in an effort to observe and report border-crossing movements.

The OSCE launched these patrols along the 82 km border between Georgia and the Chechen Republic of the Russian Federation in 1999, following frequent and mutual accusations between Tbilisi and Moscow over cross-border movements of militant groups. 

At the request of the Georgian government, the OSCE agreed to extend monitoring into the 58 km Ingush section of the Georgian-Russian border in December 2001. In December 2002 the OSCE decided to further extend its monitoring mission to the Daghestani section of the border.