LITTLE PROGRESS RESULTS FROM MAY 31 GEORGIA-RUSSIA

C O N F I D E N T I A L TBILISI 001386

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/CARC. EB/MTA/BTA AND EB/TPP/MTA
STATE PASS USTR FOR PAUL BURKHEAD AND CECELIA KLEIN
COMMERCE FOR ITA/MAC/4231 DANICA STARKS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/06/2017
TAGS: ETRD USTR WTO GG RU
SUBJECT: LITTLE PROGRESS RESULTS FROM MAY 31 GEORGIA-RUSSIA
WTO DISCUSSIONS

Classified By: Ambassador John F. Tefft, reason 1.4(b) and (d).

(C) 1. Georgian trade, customs and immigration officials
spent a grueling seven hours on May 31 negotiating with
Russian counterparts, including Russia's chief WTO negotiator
Max Medvedkov, about Georgian objections to Russia's WTO
accession bid. According to Georgia's lead WTO negotiator,
Deputy Minister of Economic Development Tamuna Kovsiridze,
the Georgian side had a hard time getting the Russians to
take their concerns about the operation of border crossings
from Russia into Abkhazia and South Ossetia seriously. The
crossings operate without the consent of the Georgian
government. Georgia insists they contravene the 2004
Georgia-Russia bilateral agreement for Russia's WTO
accession, which Georgia revoked in June 2006 because of
Russia's non-compliance with promises to regulate or close
the crossings. The issue is of vital importance to Georgia
for two reasons. One, the GOG has no control over the flow
of people, goods, weapons, narcotics and even nuclear
materials onto its territory. Two, the issue cuts to the
heart of Georgia's claim of sovereignty over South Ossetia
and Abkhazia.

(C) 2. Kovsiridze said that the Russians were not as
well-prepared for the discussions as the Georgian side. Most
of the debate was about whether the border crossing issue was
WTO-related, and even whether Georgia has a right to complain
about the existence of the crossings in the first place. For
example, when the Georgians asked why the Russians allowed
the border checkpoints to operate without Georgia's consent,
the Russians replied, "Did you ask us for permission to open
a checkpoint at the new airport in Tbilisi?" Kovsiridze
considers that response as frivolous because the airport is
not located on the border of a foreign country, as are the
crossings in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. As a result, the
discussion did not reach the issue of what practical solution
could be reached that would allow Georgia to consent to
Russia's proceeding with multilateral negotiations in the WTO.

(C) 3. Kovsiridze and the GOG consider the border crossing
issue to be squarely within the purview of the WTO, because
it involves tariffs, customs procedures and other matters
that are clearly trade-related. The discussions with the
Russians revealed some information that the Georgians believe
will be useful in supporting their arguments, such as an
admission that Russian customs authorities are accepting at
the disputed crossings certificates of origin issued by the
Chamber of Commerce in Sokhumi, and that Turkish goods are
entering and transiting Abkhazia into Russia without
inspection or imposition of tariffs by the Georgian
authorities.

(C) 4. Comment: The Russian negotiators were willing to meet
again with the Georgians, perhaps in July. The Russian
government has expressed a desire to wrap up WTO negotiations
by the end of the year, which may be motivating their
officials. The Russian attitude in the negotiations with
Georgia is at odds with the GOR's professed respect for
Georgia's territorial integrity, but consistent with their
more or less overt support for the legitimacy of the de facto
authorities in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Their lack of
seriousness in the negotiations so far reflects an apparent
reluctance to come to grips with these two contradictory
positions. Removing the Georgians as a roadblock to their
WTO accession will require from Russia either highly creative
diplomacy or tough decisions about how to treat the
separatist regions. End Comment.
TEFFT