DECREE ISSUED BY THE STATE DUMA OF THE FEDERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION on the statement of the state DUMA on inadmissibility of violating the universal principles and norms of International humanitarian law with regard to the impoverished population of Abkhazia

The State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation resolves:

1. To adopt the statement of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation “On the inadmissibility of violating universal principles and norms of international humanitarian law with regard to the impoverished population of Abkhazia”.

2. To request that the Chair of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, G. N. Seleznyov, forward this statement to the President of the Russian Federation Boris Yeltsin, the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Victor Chernomyrdin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Yevgeny Primakov, Director of the Federal Border Service of the Russian Federation A. N. Nikolaev, Chair of the State Customs Committee of the Russian Federation A. S. Kruglov, Chair of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Leni Fisher, and General Secretary of the Council of Europe Daniel Tarshis.

3. Recommend to the President of the Russian Federation:

a) Not to permit the Government of the Russian Federation, in its peacekeeping efforts related to the settling of the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict, to take unilateral action that is counterproductive to Russia, and to stop violations against the population of Abkhazia of universal principles and norms of international humanitarian law, which are an integral part of the legal system of the Russian Federation;

b) To propose to the Government of the Russian Federation:

to refrain from current sanctions against the poverty-stricken population of Abkhazia for the sake of ensuring Georgia’s territorial integrity;

to reverse Resolution 1394 of the Government of the Russian Federation “On measures to temporarily limit crossings of the Russian Federation’s borders with the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Georgia,” passed on December 1994, “in order to ensure the security of the Russian Federation in connection with the conflict in the Chechen Republic.” On the basis of this resolution, the Federation Border Service of the Russian Federation does not permit entry into or exit from Abkhazia;

establish a list of commodities banned for export to Abkhazia to replace the current limited list of commodities permitted. The list should contain all commodities that could aid in the militarization of the region;

c) Suggest to the leadership of the Federal Border Service of the Russian Federation to refrain from attempts to prevent nonmilitary ships from entering or leaving Abkhazian ports, which are not in keeping witnorm of international law; and to examine these ships in the relevant Abkhazian port.

4. Publish this Resolution and the related Statement in Rossiiskaya Gazeta.

5. This Resolution goes into force the day it is adopted.

Chairman of the State Duma

of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation G. N. Seleznyov

24 June 1997

(Collection of the Legislation of the RF, 1997, # 28, p. 5538-5539)