Rice calls on Russia to implement ceasefire
Washington, 14 June (IranVNC)—US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called on Russia to respect a French-brokered ceasefire agreement aimed at bringing six days of military conflict between Russia and Georgia to an end.
By: IranVNC
Published: Thursday, August 14, 2008
17:33GMT—1:33AM/EST
RICE – GEORGIA – RUSSIA
Washington, 14 June (IranVNC)—US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called on Russia to respect a French-brokered ceasefire agreement aimed at bringing six days of military conflict between Russia and Georgia to an end.
"The provisional cease-fire that was agreed to really must go into place” Rice said in Paris, adding: “And that means that military activities have to cease,” AP reports.
Rice stopped in France today for a meeting with President Nicolas Sarkozy before heading for the Georgian capital Tbilisi to deliver a formal ceasefire agreement for Georgian president Mikheil Sakashvili’s signature.
The military conflict erupted last week when Georgia, a close US ally, launched an offensive to reclaim the pro-Russian region of South Ossetia, which seceded from Georgia in 1992. Moscow immediately executed a counter-offensive.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev ordered his country’s forces to stop military actions in Georgia on 12 August, but Russian troops remain in Georgian territory, operating in Gori and the surrounding region, 35 miles (60 kilometers) from South Ossetia.
A top Russian General said last night that his country would soon transfer control of the region back to Georgia.
“For another two days Russian troops will stay in the region to carry out procedures of handing over control functions to Georgian law enforcement bodies after which they will leave," Reuters quotes Major-General Vyacheslav Borisov as saying.
Speaking to reporters yesterday, Rice reiterated President George W. Bush’s support for Georgia’s “territorial integrity” saying that Russia was continuing military operations “only serve to deepen the very strong, growing sense that Russia is not behaving like the kind of international partner that it has said that it wants to be.”
At the White House yesterday, President Bush said: “The United States of America stands with the democratically elected government of Georgia. We insist that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia be respected.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov responded by saying the United States needs to choose between a partnership with Moscow or with the Georgian leadership, which he called a “virtual project” of the United States, reports Reuters.
But Rice rejected Lavrov’s comments, saying: “To call [Georgia] a project of anyplace, of anybody, perhaps belies more about the way Russia thinks about its neighbors than the way it thinks about U.S. policy.”
U.S. sends humanitarian aid
The United States began sending humanitarian aid to Georgia amid reports by the New York-based human rights organization, Human Rights Watch, that “forces on both sides of the conflict between Georgia and Russia appear to have killed and injured civilians through indiscriminate attacks.” The report drew particular attention to casualties in Gori, Tskhinvali and the surrounding areas.
A U.S. military aircraft arrived in Georgia yesterday carrying humanitarian supplies and another flight was planned for today. President Bush, who yesterday ordered the Pentagon to oversee the humanitarian operation, said he expected Russia to allow humanitarian aid to Georgia.
For his part, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said yesterday that his country was investigating reports of civilian casualties at the hands of the Russian military, adding: “Such actions would not be tolerated,” Reuters reports.
Sources: White House Website, U.S. State Department website, Human Rights Watch, Reuters, Associated Press
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