PROTOCOL
OF THE FIFTH SESSION OF THE COORDINATING COUNCIL OF THE GEORGIAN AND ABKHAZIAN
SIDES
The Fifth Session of the Coordinating Council set
up based on the final declaration of the meeting of the Georgian and Abkhazian
sides (Geneva, 17-19 November 1997) was held in Sukhumi on 2 September 1998
under the auspices of the United Nations, chaired by the UN Secretary General’s
Special Representative Mr. Liviu Bota.
The agenda of the meeting comprised the following
items:
1. Problems relating to sustained non-resumption
of combat operations and security problems;
2. Refugees and persons displaced within the
country;
3. Economic and social problems.
The Georgian side was represented by the
delegation headed by Mr. Vazha Lordkipanidze.
The Abkhazian side was represented by the
delegation headed by Mr. Sergey Bagapsh.
The opening the session, the UN Secretary
General’s Special Representative Mr. Liviu Bota proposed to concentrate the
attention of the participants on three issues:
1. Full implementation of the Gagra Protocol;
2. Elaboration of mechanisms for prevention and
investigation of violations of the Moscow Agreement on Cease-fire and
Separation of Forces;
3. The sides’ attitude toward the protests of
UNOMIG and CIS CPKF.
Representatives of the sides, the
The commander of the CIS CPKF General Sergey
Korobko and the chief UN military observer of the UNOMIG General Harun
Ar-Rashid reported on the current situation in the conflict zone.
The Council
made the following decisions:
1. Based on the necessity of stopping the
dangerous escalation of tension threatening with renewed armed clashes, the
sides shall:
a) Take effective measures aimed at stopping the
continuing exchanges of fire across the line of division of the sides at the
nighttime;
b) Take measures aimed at preventing terrorist and
subversive groups, armed formations, and individuals from crossing the line of
division of the sides;
c) The Abkhazian side shall take measures aimed at
protecting the peaceful residents of Gali District from unlawful acts of
violence.
2. To set up a joint group consisting of
representatives of the sides, UNOMIG, and CIS CPKF for investigation and
prevention of terrorist attacks and other violations of the law. The group led
by the UN Secretary General’s Special Representative shall in two weeks time
elaborate the statute on the functioning of the group and submit it along the
way to members of the Coordination Council for adoption. This statute shall
include procedural rules, including the list members, the manner of
convocation, directives for investigation, proposals on implementation of
conclusions Georgia will make during the work performed;
3. The sides undertake the obligation to study and
react to the protests submitted by the UNOMIG and CIS CPKF concerning
violations of the Moscow Agreement on Cease-fire and Separation of Forces. In
case the sides continue disregarding the protests submitted by the UNOMIG and
CIS CPKF, the UN Secretary General shall report to the Security Council
thereon.
4. To ask the UN Secretary General’s Special
Representative to recommence negotiations between the sides on the elimination
of the consequences of developments in May with the view of safe return of
refugees and measures of economic rehabilitation of Abkhazia.
5. To amend Paragraph 2 of Article 2 of the
Statute of the Coordination Council and formulate the first sentence of the
paragraph in the following way: “Four representatives of the Georgian and
Abkhazian sides each become members of the Council.”
6. The UN Secretary General’s Special
Representative, representatives of the Russian Federation as a facilitating
side, the countries, members of the UN Secretary General’s group of friends,
and OSCE adopted the decision (appended).
Appendix
The UN Secretary General’s Special Representative,
representatives of the Russian Federation as a facilitating side, the
countries, members of the UN Secretary General’s group of friends, and OSCE
urge the sides to stop actions aggravating the situation in the conflict zone
and able to lead to renewal of armed clashes.
It is meant that both sides shall stop building
military engineering structures and eliminate them with the forces of the sides
under the surveillance of the UNOMIG and CIS CPKF during a period of thirty
days.
(Abkhaz Issue in Official Documents, Legislative
and Executive organs of Georgia, International Organizations, 1989-1999, part
II, 1995-1999; authors: Vakhtang Kholbaia, Teimuraz Chakhrakia, Rafiel
Gelantia, David Latsuzbaia, Tb., 2000, p. 252-254/in Georgan)