“Withdrawing troops” going in the wrong direction

In spite of the declaration of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on September 9 that “Russian forces could pull out of Georgia in three or four days if Georgia complies with the peace agreement by withdrawing its own troops,” there are still no signs of any withdrawal. Though leaving the village of Ganmukhuri, Russian troops have reinforced their positions in Samegrelo, where they are assaulting the civilian population.

“The withdrawal will be determined by how effectively Georgia returns its forces to their permanent bases, and it will be determined by how well the peacekeepers strengthen their posts”, Lavrov said in televised remark. On the same day however, following a visit of European leaders to the Russian capital, Lavrov hosted Abkhaz and Ossetian separatists in Moscow. Russia has already drafted several agreements which define the establishment of official diplomatic ties and military assistance to the breakaway regions of Georgia.

After separatist gangs left the village of Ganmukhuri, Georgian police resumed their control of the territory, which was razed to ground during the Russian aggression after a separatist attack. IDPs have returned to their homes in Ganmukhuri, having generally stayed with relatives in Darcheli and Kakhati during the aggression. The separatists inflicted serious damage on the village, burning the youth camp, the beach and the Georgian police stations. From August 13, the separatists and aggressors had been trying to force the local Georgians to take Russian citizenship.

Russian occupiers are now undertaking construction works at their illegal checkpoints in Samegrelo, reinforcing them with concrete blocks and mining the surrounding territory. They have taken concrete blocks, sand and other construction materials to all 14 checkpoints and erected barriers along the highway. The construction materials are being brought in from the Gali district, where they are dismantling schools in the Georgian-populated area. Armoured vehicles are stationed at every checkpoint, each one being guarded by Russian snipers.

The Georgian Defence Ministry has also released radar data, which shows that Russian jets violated Georgian airspace on the night of September 7. The Georgian Government released a special statement in this regard. For 45 minutes the jets flew over the Shatili and Tskhinvali regions. In addition, Russia continues to deploy more troops to the illegal checkpoints. ''These two violations force us to conclude that Russia has no intention of fulfilling its obligations,'' the MOD statement says.

After talks between Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Davit Bakradze and UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, on September 8 the Speaker stated that “The UN will send a working mission of observers to Georgia, which will be in charge of investigating the scale of humanitarian catastrophe inflicted on Georgia by the Russian aggression and the instances of ethnic cleansing.” Meanwhile the residents of the village of Pirveli Maisi, in Khobi district, have held a demonstration, objecting to the presence of Russian occupiers in their region. School teachers and pupils demanded the immediate withdrawal of the Russian army from Georgia and called upon international organizations to substitute Russian soldiers with an international policing mission.