Russia formally recognizes S. Ossetia, Abkhazia
Washington, 26 August (IranVNC)—Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev today announced that Moscow formally recognizes the independence of the two Georgian breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
By: IranVNC
Published: Tuesday, August 26, 2008
14:30GMT—10:30AM/EST
RUSSIA – SOUTH OSSETIA – ABKHAZIA – RECOGNITION
Washington, 26 August (IranVNC)—Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev today announced that Moscow formally recognizes the independence of the two Georgian breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Speaking in a televised address from the Russian resort city of Sochi, he said: “I have signed decrees on the recognition by the Russian Federation of the independence of South Ossetia and the independence of Abkhazia.”
He called on other countries to follow Moscow’s lead, and added: “This is not an easy decision, but it is the only way to protect people’s lives.”
The move flouts a call from US President George W. Bush yesterday that Russia “meet its commitments and not recognize these separatist regions.”
Georgia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Giga Bokeria, today condemned the move as an “unconcealed annexation” of Georgian territory, Reuters reports.
Yesterday, both houses of Russia’s parliament voted unanimously in favor of a resolution urging Medvedev to recognize the independence of the two breakaway regions.
Both regions have had defacto independence since breaking away from Georgia in the early 1990s, but no other country has recognized either region as an independent state.
The move has drawn condemnations from the U.S. and other Western countries, which back Georgian rule over the two regions.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, speaking from Estonia, called the decision “absolutely not acceptable” and “contrary to international law,” Deutsche Welle reports.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who was in the West Bank city of Ramallah, called Medvedev’s move “regrettable”, and added that Russia’s decision would not be upheld by the United Nations.
“Since the United States is a permanent member of the Security Council, this simply will be dead-on-arrival in the [UN] Security Council,” she said.
NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer also rejected Medvedev’s decision. In a statement read out by a spokesperson, he said it was a “direct violation” of UN Security Council resolutions on Georgia.
Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Miliband called the move “unjustifiable and unacceptable” and called for an international coalition against what he called “Russian aggression in Georgia”, Reuters reports.
Italy’s Foreign Minister Franco Frattini called it the “Balkanization of the Caucasus on an ethnic basis”.
And a French Foreign Ministry spokesperson called the decision “regrettable” and reaffirmed Paris’s commitment to Georgia’s “territorial integrity”.
Despite the wave of condemnations, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted by Deutche Welle today as saying that Russia is unlikely to be subject to international isolation.
“I don’t think we should really be afraid of isolation,” he told reporters in English, adding: “I don’t believe this should really be a doomsday scenario.”
Russia and Georgia began fighting on 7 August after Georgian troops launched an attack on the Russian-backed region of South Ossetia. Russia responded with a military offensive that has expanded into other parts of Georgia.
In a show of support for Georgia, US Vice President Dick Cheney will visit the former Soviet republic early next month, the White House said yesterday.
Sources: Russia Today website, Reuters, White House website, Deutsche Welle in English
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