EUMM Report on Situation at Tskhinvali ABL

The European Union Monitoring Mission has released a detailed report on the current situation at the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) in the region of Tskhinvali (South Ossetia), currently occupied by Russia, which aims to “dispel certain inaccurate reports”.

The document outlines that in the month of January of 2019, the representatives of the Mission “noted paint markings on trees in the area between Tsnelisi and Chorchana. The Mission assesses these as a feature of ‘borderisation’,” reads the report. “However, no actor has claimed responsibility for these markings.”

The EUMM also states that on August 20-24 the Georgian side established an observation post 240 meters away from the ABL, which is located on the Tbilisi-administrated territory (TAT). In addition, the report briefs about the respond of the de facto government of Tskhinvali on Georgian actions, noting “[South Ossetia] last week established new positions and installed a number of borderisation features, including ‘green signs’ and flags on the TAT side of the ABL.”

The report also focuses on the four meetings held since August 29 within the scope of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism.

The EUMM reports that the two crossing points (Odzisi and Sinaguri) at the Tskhinvali ABL have been closed since 8PM, September 4 and there has been no information about when it will reopen released yet.

Finally, the EUMM assess the current situation at the ABL as follows: “The Mission sees these measures as harmful restrictions of movement, which negatively impact commuters from both sides of the ABL, especially affecting the population living in or regularly commuting to the Akhalgori valley.”

By Ketevan Kvaratskheliya

Image source: eeas.europa.eu