Russian Ambassador Speaks Out Against Tamarasheni Conference

A conference being held in the Georgian administered village of Tamarasheni in the South Ossetian conflict zone on September 21 ?will not help to promote confidence building? between the Georgian and South Ossetian sides, the Russian ambassador, Vyacheslav Kovalenko, said.

He had earlier declined Tbilisi?s invitation to join other foreign diplomats accredited in Georgia to participate in the conference on the country?s reforms and foreign policy priorities.
 
?I have explained why I have refused to attend the conference to Mr. [Davit] Bakradze [the Georgian state minister for conflict resolution issues],? Kovalenko said in comments broadcast on Imedi TV. ?This conference will not promote the restoration of peace on Georgian soil.?

Dimitri Sanakoev, the head of the Tbilisi-backed South Ossetian provisional administration, is expected to address the conference.

The Russian diplomat has also criticized the provisional administration and the movement Kokoity Fandarast (Godspeed in Ossetia), which aims at ousting South Ossetian secessionist leader Eduard Kokoity through peaceful public campaigns.

?The name ? Kokoity go away ? in itself is anathema to the promotion of the reconciliation process,? he said.

South Ossetian chief negotiator Boris Chochiev has also spoke against the participation of foreign diplomats in the conference, saying that it only ?serves to fuel tensions in the region.?

?They [the foreign diplomats] are engaged in a futile exercise,? he said. ?Dimitri Sanakoev does not represent anyone in South Ossetia. Therefore the participation of ambassadors in this event distorts the real state of affairs on the ground.?

Meanwhile, a convoy containing the foreign diplomats, en route to Tamarasheni, was briefly stopped by Russian peacekeepers earlier on September 21, Georgian media sources reported. The peacekeeping command cited security concerns. After some time, however, the convoy was allowed to continue on its way to Tamarasheni.

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)