RESOLUTION 1255 (30 JULY 1999)
ADOPTED BY THE UN SECURITY COUNCEL
The Security
Council,
Recalling all its
relevant resolutions, in particular resolution 1225 (1999) of 28 January 1999,
and the statement of its President of 7 May 1999 (S/PRST/1999/11),
Having considered
the report of the Secretary-General of 20 July 1999 (S/1999/805),
Noting the letter
of the President of Georgia to the Secretary-General dated 19 July 1999
(S/1999/809, annex),
Stressing that,
notwithstanding positive developments on some issues, the lack of progress on
key issues of a comprehensive settlement of the conflict in
Deeply concerned at
the continuing volatile situation in the conflict zone, welcoming in this
regard the important contributions that the United Nations Observer Mission in
Georgia (UNOMIG) and the Collective Peacekeeping Forces of the Commonwealth of
Independent States (CIS peacekeeping force) continue to make in stabilizing the
situation in the zone of conflict, noting that the working relationship between
UNOMIG and the CIS peacekeeping force has been good at all levels, and
stressing the importance of continuing and increasing close cooperation and
coordination between them in the performance of their respective mandates,
Recalling the
conclusions of the
Reaffirming the
necessity for the parties strictly to respect human rights, and expressing its
support for the efforts of the Secretary-General to find ways to improve their
observance as an integral part of the work towards a comprehensive political
settlement,
1. Welcomes the
report of the Secretary-General of 20
July 1999;
2. Demands that the
parties to the conflict widen and deepen their commitment to the United
Nations-led
peace process, continue to expand their dialogue and contacts at all
levels and display without delay the necessary will to achieve substantial
results on the key issues of the negotiations;
3. Strongly
supports the sustained efforts of the Secretary-General and his Special
Representative
with the assistance of the
Russian Federation in its capacity as facilitator as well as of the Group of
Friends of the Secretary-General and of the OSCE to promote the stabilization
of the situation and to give new impetus to the negotiations within the United
Nations-led peace process in order to achieve a comprehensive political
settlement, and commends the tireless efforts of the retiring Special
Representative of the Secretary-General, Mr. Liviu Bota, in carrying out his mandate;
4.Emphasizes, in
this context, that the readiness and ability of the international community to assist the parties depend on their
political will to resolve the conflict through dialogue and mutual
accommodation and on their acting in good faith to implement promptly concrete
measures towards bringing about a comprehensive political settlement of the
conflict;
5.Underlines the
necessity for the parties to achieve an early and comprehensive political
settlement, which includes a settlement on the political status of Abkhazia
within the State of Georgia, which fully respects the sovereignty and
territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognized borders,
and supports the intention of the Secretary-General and his Special
Representative, in close cooperation with the Russian Federation, in its
capacity as facilitator, the OSCE and the Group of Friends of the
Secretary-General, to continue to submit proposals for the consideration of the
parties on the distribution of constitutional competences between Tbilisi and Sukhumi as part of a comprehensive settlement;
6.Considers
unacceptable and illegitimate the holding of self-styled elections in Abkhazia,
Georgia;
7. Expresses its
continuing concern at the situation of refugees and displaced persons, in
particular those resulting from the hostilities of May 1998, reaffirms the
unacceptability of the demographic changes resulting from the conflict and the imprescriptible right of all refugees and displaced persons
affected by the conflict to return to their homes in secure conditions in
accordance with international law and as set out in the Quadripartite Agreement
of 4 April 1994 on the voluntary return of refugees and displaced persons
(S/1994/397, annex II), and calls upon the parties to address this issue
urgently by agreeing and implementing effective measures to guarantee the
security of those who exercise their unconditional right to return;
8. Welcomes, in
this context, the efforts of the Special Representative of the
Secretary-General to facilitate, as a first step, the safe return of refugees
and displaced persons to the Gali region, and
emphasizes, in this regard, that the lasting return of the refugees cannot be
ensured without concrete results from the bilateral dialogue between the
parties which produce the necessary security and legal guarantees;
9. Takes note with
appreciation of the agreements reached at the meetings of 16-18 October 1998
and 7-9 June 1999, hosted respectively by the Governments of Greece and Turkey,
aimed at building confidence, improving security and developing cooperation,
and calls upon the parties to enhance their efforts to implement those
decisions in an effective and comprehensive manner, notably at the prospective
meeting in Yalta at the invitation of the Government of Ukraine;
10. Demands that
both sides observe strictly the Moscow Agreement of 14 May 1994 on a Ceasefire
and Separation of Forces (S/1994/583, annex I), and takes note with
appreciation, in this context, of the substantial progress reported towards
setting up a joint investigation mechanism for violations of the Agreement, as
well as of the greater restraint exercised by the parties along the line of
separation of forces;
11. Condemns the
ongoing activities by armed groups, which endanger the civilian population,
impede the work of the humanitarian organizations and seriously delay the
normalization of the situation in the Gali region,
reiterates its concern regarding the security of UNOMIG, welcomes the
implementation of measures in this regard and requests the Secretary-General to
keep the security of UNOMIG under constant review;
12. Decides to
extend the mandate of UNOMIG for a new period terminating on 31 January 2000,
subject to a review by the Council of the mandate of UNOMIG in the event of any
changes that may be made in the mandate or in the presence of the CIS
peacekeeping force;
13. Requests the
Secretary-General to continue to keep the Council regularly informed and to
report three months from the date of the adoption of this resolution on the
situation in
14. Expresses its
intention to conduct a thorough review of the operation at the end of its
current mandate, in the light of steps taken by the parties to achieve a
comprehensive settlement;
15. Decides to
remain actively seized of the matter.