The European Union, in a statement made at the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on June 14, welcomed the Georgian government’s attempts to engage in an “all-inclusive consultative process” with all the forces within South Ossetia.
The statement came in response to Foreign Minister Gela Bezhuashvili's address to the Permanent Council, in which he had said that the emergence of Tbilisi-loyal Dimitri Sanakoev’s administration – which he referred to as the “People of South Ossetia for Peace” movement - “symbolizes the new reality” in South Ossetia.
The EU said in the statement that it hoped that the South Ossetian population “and all political and societal forces will engage constructively, and in a spirit of dialogue and compromise, in efforts towards conflict resolution.”
"The EU welcomes the Georgian government’s invitation to the South Ossetian society as a whole – i.e. representatives of all political forces and local groups – to participate actively in discussions on progress towards peaceful conflict resolution,” the EU said.
“All-inclusive consultative process, open to members of civil society, is regarded by the EU as a basic principle of conflict resolution.”
The statement, however, added that this all-inclusive process “can only succeed if it is given sufficient time to unfold, and if it is accompanied by concrete confidence building measures.”
“In this respect, we are looking forward to learn more about the progress made regarding this very important process of dialogue in which representatives of all political and societal forces were invited to take part.”
The EU also said that it was “disappointed” that the parties had failed to agree on holding a session of the quadripartite negotiating body, the Joint Control Commission (JCC).
It also called on the parties “to comply fully with previous agreements” including those related to demilitarization.
The statement said that the EU “stands ready to play its part as well, including through the use of EU instruments to promote confidence building measures.”
