Russia Blames Georgia for Politicizing IPRM
The 89th meeting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) in Ergneti was disrupted on September 14 when representatives of the de-facto government of Georgia’s breakaway region of South Ossetia walked out in protest.
The Ossetian representatives objected to the inclusion on the agenda of the murder of Georgian citizens Archil Tatunashvili and David Basharuli.
“The demands for changing the issues on the agenda and setting ultimatums within the IPRM format are categorically unacceptable for the Government of Georgia, due to the fact that demands are contrary to the fundamental principles of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism,” the Georgian Security Service stated.
Organizers EUMM and OSCE reiterated their strong commitment to the IPRM format as the only valuable mechanism to address security for the conflicted population living in the vicinity of the Administrative Boundary Line.
Now, Russia is blaming the disruption of the 89th IPRM meeting on the Georgian side. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said “We express serious concern over the disruption of the 89th meeting within the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism, which was to be held on September 14...Tbilisi put certain politicized issues on the agenda that were unacceptable for Tskhinvali.”
Zakharova continued, "We would like to remind you that previously, confrontational actions from the Georgian side disrupted a similar mechanism on the Georgian-Abkhaz border. Tbilisi’s policy of politicizing the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism meetings may block this useful format. It should be noted that Tskhinvali does not refuse to participate in future Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism meetings. We call on the co-chairmen of the Geneva Talks to promote the proper functioning of the mechanism.”
By Samantha Guthrie and Thea Morrison
Photo: EUMM