APPEAL OF THE SUPREME COUNCIL OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH OSSETIA TO THE SUPREME COUNCIL OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

In view of preparation of the draft agreement between the Russian federation and Georgia on interstate relations involving the national-political interests of the Ossetian people, the Supreme Council of the Republic of Ossetia submits the appeal to the Supreme council of the Russian Federation and asks to exclude from the Agreement the conditions relating to the determination of borders between the Republic of South Ossetia and the North Ossetian SSR, as having no historical-legal ground after dissolution of the USSR and termination of validity of the Constitutions of the USSR and GSSR, and as drafted without involving the plenipotentiary representatives of South and North Ossetia.

Neglecting the interests of the Ossetian people, who will be facing final ethnic and territorial division within the conditions proposed by the Agreement, grossly violates the norms of international law, which guarantees, inter alia, the free choice of people within their national territories.

The said Agreement runs counter to the historical and political-legal realities, which have formed the relations between the peoples of South Ossetia and Georgia.

After 1917 revolution the people of South Ossetia, defending its right to self-identification and acting against separation from the North Ossetia and Russia, became the subject of genocide from the Georgian side. Later on, against its will, it was included within Georgia as the autonomous entity. In 1989-1992 the genocide was committed again against people the Republic of South Ossetia.

Political-legal realities established as a result of dissolution of the USSR and breach of Constitutional grounds for coexistence of the nations of former republics and autonomous entities, established the new circumstances providing the possibility to raise the issue of equality of the peoples of former autonomous entities.

In full compliance with the acknowledge legal norms and on the basis of the right to self-identification expressed at the Referendum of 19 January 1992, the people of South Ossetia declared its national-state sovereignty that permits it to make an appeal to the Supreme Council of the Russian Federation and ask for not admitting determining the border between the South and the North Ossetia, as such development runs counter to the national interests of the whole of Ossetian nation.

Historical, legal and political aspects of unlawful existence of borders between South and North Ossetia are established in the annexes:

1. Memorandum of the Supreme Council of the Republic of South Ossetia about borders.

2. Statement of the Supreme Council of the Republic of South Ossetia of 10 May 1992.

3. Treaty-legal status of interrelations between Russia, Georgia and Ossetia after June 1990

Adopted at the session of the Supreme Council of the Republic of South Ossetia

Tskhinval, 19 November 1992

(Conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Documents 1989-2006 (Supplement to “Kavkazskie Sborniki”, edition #1). Collected and commented by M. A. Volkhonski, B. A. Zakharov, N. Y. Silaev. – Moscov, 2008, p. 212-213/in Russian)