| Submit your comments on this article |
| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Georgia offers power-sharing plan in South Ossetia |
| 2005-01-26 |
| Georgia's President Mikheil Saakashvili will use avisit to the Council of Europe today to unveil proposals to give broad autonomy to South Ossetia, in an effort to end a long-running conflict with the breakaway region. Mr Saakashvili plans to offer a power-sharing arrangement that will give South Ossetia full responsibility for education and cultural policy and public order issues, as well as guarantees on its language. The central government in Tbilisi would be responsible for security and defence, foreign policy and fiscal policy. The proposals are crucial to Mr Saakashvili's plans to restore Georgia's territorial integrity without antagon-ising Russia at a time of increasing tensions between the two former Soviet republics. South Ossetia, on Georgia's northern border, has enjoyed de facto independence from Georgia, backed by Russia, since an earlier conflict in 1991-92. Violence flared again last year after Mr Saakashvili took power on a pledge to restore central authority to his fragmented country. The Georgian president says today's proposals, involving a shift to a more federal structure for the country, represent a compromise on his original intentions. "Of course it is a compromise," he said. "We want to do this peacefully, and there is a price to be paid for that." But Eduard Kokoity, South Ossetia's president, yesterday gave the plan a chilly reception. "Mr Saakashvili can't understand that the train left the station a long time ago," he said. "South Ossetia's status was decided by its people in a referendum in 1995." Georgia accuses Russia of encouraging breakaway movements in South Ossetia and Abkhazia as part of its efforts to preserve Russian influence there. Tensions between the two countries have escalated since Russia moved to abolish monitoring of the Russia-Georgia border by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, designed to maintain peace in the volatile north Caucasus, from the beginning of this year. The monitoring was also aimed at keeping rebels from neighbouring Chechnya from crossing into Georgia's Pankisi gorge, which Russia has accused them of using as a base. Salome Zurabishvili, Georgia's foreign minister, said her country was deeply concerned about Russia's hawkish rhetoric towards Georgia. She said abolition of OSCE monitoring left the country more exposed to pressure from Russia. She said Georgia was surprised by Russia's contradictory statements about the monitoring. Russia initially argued that the OSCE mission, which began in 2000, had achieved its objectives and was no longer needed, but later said it was ineffective and had failed to prevent the movement of rebels. Russian foreign ministry officials accused Georgia of providing safe haven for Chechen terrorists, and said 250-300 rebels were hiding in the Pankisi gorge. "We have repeatedly told the Russians that the Pankisi gorge is clear. We have asked Russia to provide us with specific information if they have it. We even offered to them to come and inspect it with us," Ms Zurabishvili said. She said Georgia was looking for new partners - possibly the European Union - to monitor the border. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |