GUIDANCE: UNSC EMERGENCY MEETING ON GEORGIA

UNCLAS STATE 042903

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: UNSC PREL PBTS GE RU
SUBJECT: GUIDANCE: UNSC EMERGENCY MEETING ON GEORGIA

REF: A. USUN 356

B. TBILISI 614

C. MOSCOW 1055


1. Action request: Department requests that USUN deliver the
following statement in para 2 below at the UNSC meeting on
Georgia scheduled for Wednesday, April 23. End Action
Request.



2. Begin statement:

-- Thank you, Mr. President. I would like to welcome
Georgian Foreign Minister Bakradze to the Council today.

-- The United States is deeply concerned by the April 16
Russian Presidential Instructions authorizing increased
contacts between the Russian government and the separatist
regime in Abkhazia and South Ossetia without the approval of
the Georgian government. With that in mind, I would like to
make four points.

-- First, this step challenges Georgia's territorial
integrity and is not in keeping with Russia's status as a
"facilitator" of the peace process.

-- In numerous Security Council resolutions, including
resolution 1808 that we passed last week, this Council has
reaffirmed the commitment of all member states

to the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity
of Georgia within its internationally recognized borders; and

to settlement of the conflict within the framework of
Security Council resolutions.

-- Second, we urge Russia to live up to its statements of
support for the principles of Georgia's sovereignty, to abide
by the resolutions of this Council reaffirming Georgia's
territorial integrity, and to repeal the April 16
instructions.

-- As we have previously stated, we regret the Russian
decision to withdraw unilaterally from Commonwealth of
Independent States (CIS) economic and military sanctions on
Abkhazia. While we recognize assurances that we have
received from Russian government officials that Russia will
continue to adhere to military sanctions against Abkhazia,
the lifting of CIS sanctions has raised concerns over
military transparency in the region. We believe the
withdrawal of sanctions undermines the peace process.

-- We also express our serious concern regarding the shooting
down of a Georgian unmanned aerial vehicle in Georgian
airspace this past weekend. We call for an end to all armed
incursions into Georgia's airspace, which constitute a
serious breach of Georgia's sovereignty and territorial
integrity. The U.S. regards both the violation of Georgia's
airspace and the shooting down of the UAV as acts that
escalate tensions in the region. We call on all sides to
exercise restraint in a highly volatile region.

-- Third, the United States welcomes the new initiatives put
forward by the Georgian president to advance a negotiated
political resolution of the Abkhazia conflict. We urge the
de facto authorities in Abkhazia to respond constructively to
these initiatives, as well as the previous
confidence-building measures proposed in Geneva in 2007, and
hope that Moscow will encourage Abkhazia's de facto
authorities to do so.

-- Finally, we call on all parties to pursue a peaceful
resolution of the separatist conflicts in Georgia. There is
no military solution to this conflict, and we strongly urge
all parties to refrain from any use of military force and to
work to de-escalate and reduce tensions. We encourage the
Russian government to work constructively within the Group of
Friends of the UN Secretary General and other international
frameworks to promote political settlement of the conflicts.

-- Thank you, Mr. President.

end statement.
RICE