Saakashvili Says Wants EU’s ‘Louder’ Reaction

President Saakashvili complained on November 9 that there was not enough reaction from EU against detention of four Georgian teenagers by the authorities in breakaway South Ossetia.

Saakashvili said he would have a phone conversation with U.S. Vice President, Joe Biden, on November 10 and wanted talks with French President Nicolas Sarkozy to raise the issue of four Georgian under aged citizens, who were arrested in the vicinity of Tskhinvali on November 4.

“Tomorrow I have a conversation with the U.S. Vice President. I have ordered this conversation particularly to talk on this matter [detention of teenagers],” he said.

He was speaking at a meeting with MP Giorgi Targmadze and MP Levan Vepkhvadze, the leaders of Christian-Democratic Movement (CDM) and of the parliamentary minority group. CDM leaders were in the village of Tirdznisi earlier on November 9 to meet with relatives of detained teenagers.

“We have summoned the French ambassador today in the Foreign Ministry and demanded to arrange a conversation with [French President Nicolas] Sarkozy, who is a guarantor of ceasefire treaty, which Russia tore over the head of not only Georgia, but of the entire international community,” Saakashvili said.

“And over European Union first of all,” Davit Bakradze, the parliamentary chairman, who was also attending the meeting, intervened at that point.

“And over European Union of course,” Saakashvili repeated and continued: “So I want to raise this issue, these provocations [with western leaders], which they [Russia] are staging everyday and by doing so they are testing their [western] reaction.”

“In general we want louder reactions,” he said. “Today we saw EU’s statement, which is not enough.”

He also complained about presence of Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, at a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

“What does it mean – welcoming the Russian President in Berlin as if being a huge democrat to mark the fall of the Berlin Wall, while Erich Honecker [the last leader of German Democratic Republic] was not doing even tenth of what [Russia] is doing now here; Honecker was eventually apprehended by Europeans… And now they [Europeans] have him [Medvedev] sitting smiling next to them; it won’t work – shaking one hand with them [Europeans] and capturing children with another hand.”

“This is something which requires reaction – the reaction from those people, who all this period have been guarantors for implementation of these [ceasefire] treaties,” Saakashvili said.

He also said that Russia wanted Georgia “to go into its trap” and at the same time to test whether or not the west would react on these provocations.

“Russians are testing reactions of others, what others will do in response to Russia’s provocations. What will happen next depend on such cases. I will talk with Americans, French and others tomorrow and let’s see what their reaction will be,” Saakashvili said.

He thanked CDM leaders for “showing attention towards this issue” of detention of the four teenagers.

“I have heard your criticism towards the authorities and I can share most of your criticism and accept it, because the matter concerns our children,” Saakashvili said.

MP Giorgi Targamadze told him that “lack of communication” by local authorities with the relatives of detained teenagers, as well as “flawed” crisis management capabilities were among the problems.