All participants in the Geneva Discussions have expressed support for the development of a document on the non-use of force, but the parties' approaches differ. This was stated by Konstantin Kochiev, State Advisor to President of South Ossetia, commenting on one of the key topics of the 66th round of the International Discussions on Security in Transcaucasia.
According to the State Advisor, the South Ossetian party views this political document as a necessary first step toward preparing a full-fledged, legally binding agreement on the non-use of force.
Despite the parties' significantly different approaches, the issue remains on the active agenda.
Kochiev has reminded that the draft document has a long history – its active development in Geneva began back in 2011.
"Then the Georgian party blocked its further progress." "And so, over the past two or three years, this project has been discussed again. This time, it is supported by all the delegations, but there are very serious disagreements and discrepancies regarding its substantive content," the State Adviser clarified.
According to him, the main subject of dispute remains the fundamental principles: what the document is based on, and who the signatory parties should be. Tskhinval's position on this issue remains principled and unchanged.
"In our understanding, the document should be signed by three parties – South Ossetia, Abkhazia, and Georgia, because Georgia was the source of this entire history of aggression, the attack on South Ossetia. And this has happened more than once," Kochiyv has emphasized.
He has added that Georgia has long attempted aggression against South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
During the 66th round, the parties presented their drafts and visions for the future agreement.
According to Kochiev, the open and substantive discussion took place, during which the South Ossetian delegation convincingly refuted Tbilisi's arguments.
"Georgia operates on the premise that Russia is the aggressor, as they claim, and Georgia is the victim of aggression. Of course, this doesn't stand up to scrutiny. We presented the arguments that absolutely demonstrate—and this is confirmed by the independent international experts and the commission that examined the history of the war—that it was Georgia that attacked South Ossetia. We don't need convincing here. We all remember very well in South Ossetia how and what happened," the State Adviser stated.
The diplomat has reminded the events of August 2008, when, almost immediately after Mikheil Saakashvili's peace declarations, the avalanche of shells and rockets rained down on Tskhinval.
Kochiev pointed to the important legal fact: in October 2008, the Georgian delegates to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) themselves signed the Resolution No. 1633, which clearly recognized Georgia's attack on South Ossetia.
Kochiev has noted that it is difficult for Georgian diplomacy to abandon the long-standing narrative that has been conveyed at the UN, OSCE, PACE, and elsewhere. At the same time, there is a clear discrepancy between Tbilisi's rhetoric at international meetings and the statements of Georgia's current political leadership domestically.
"We need to find solutions and move away from these long-standing narratives that have been implanted in the public consciousness in Georgia and around the world. This will be very difficult for Georgians." "Although it's clear that there is a discrepancy between what Georgia's political leadership is saying about Georgia's guilt toward South Ossetia, the Abkhazians, and the Ossetians, and what the Georgian representatives are saying at various venues," he has noted.
Summing up the discussion, the State Advisor has emphasized that the work on the document is ongoing.
"Nevertheless, discussions on the document on the non-use of force are ongoing; the issue is far from closed; on the contrary, it will be continued. This is a very important area of work for us; it remains open and valid," Kochiev has concluded.
