The Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister has addressed the Committee of Ministers’ Deputies of the Council of Europe

The FINANCIAL — The Committee of Ministers’ Deputies of the Council of Europe held its 1224th meeting on 1 April 2015. Within the frames of the agenda item “the Council of Europe and the Conflict in Georgia”, Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Khatuna Totladze made a statement regarding the signature of the so-called ”treaty on alliance and integration” between the Russian Federation and the occupation regime of the Tskhinvali Region.

The Deputy Minister assessed the fact as the violation of the international law by the Russian Federation and emphasized that despite international concerns the Russian Federation carries on with  the process of creeping annexation of the Georgian territories, according to MFA Georgia.

As the Deputy Minister stated the so-called “treaty” is in a flagrant violation of Russia’s commitments under the Ceasefire Agreement of 2008. The signing of the document will further aggravate the human rights situation of the population residing in the occupied territories and will have severe implications in Georgia and the wider region.
 
The Deputy Minister called upon the international community, the Member States of the Council of Europe to condemn the illegal actions carried out by the Russian Federation and devise an effective response to confront this blatant challenge. The Deputy Minister also focused on the importance of access of the Council of Europe monitoring mechanisms in the occupied territories of Georgia.
 
At the meeting of the Committee of Ministers’ Deputies of the Council of Europe Georgia’s supportive statements were made by the delegations of the European Union, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Norway, Poland, Romania, Portugal, Ukraine, Ireland, Sweden, Turkey, Slovenia, Bulgaria and Moldova, who condemned the signature of the so-called “treaties” with the occupied regions of Georgia and called upon Russia to observe the principles of international law and respect Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders.