Russian Politicians Warn Against Interference in South Ossetia

Reacting to the sharp escalation of the long-smouldering Georgian- South Ossetian confrontation, Russian prominent political and public figures condemned Georgia’s actions and called on international organizations to intervene. A number of politicians, however, spoke against Russia’s possible direct interference in the conflict.

The Council of Muftis of Russia has described as “shameful” Georgia’s military actions in South Ossetia which resulted in the destruction of Tskhinvali, ITAR-TASS reported at 1510 gmt on Friday 8 August. “On behalf of Russia’s Muslim community we are calling on Georgia’s politicians and statesmen to halt military attacks against women, the elderly and children and immediately stop bloodshed and violence which may leave an infamous page in Georgian history and lead to a humanitarian catastrophe,” a statement by this religious organization says.

Muslim leaders urged the leaders of Georgia and South Ossetia to remember that “the Georgian and Ossetian peoples have century-long ties of friendship and kinship”. “However difficult and complex they may be, contentious issues should be resolved at the negotiating table on the basis of international law, from the point of view of the interests of peoples who have lived side by sides for centuries and have a century-long history of peaceful neighbourhood,” the Council of Muftis of Russia stressed. “We must defend our citizens in South Ossetia,” Aleksandr Babakov, State Duma deputy speaker from A Just Russia faction, has said in a statement circulated on Friday in connection with Georgia’s armed actions against South Ossetia, Interfax reported at 1435 gmt.

The MP said that Russia should use its clout in the international arena to show the world community the true causes of the events and the true culprits. “Considering Europe’s virtual silence and the UN Security Council’s reluctance to condemn the developments in South Ossetia, we can speak about double standards. We are being constantly reminded of God knows what while a blind eye is being turned to obvious acts of aggression, genocide and violation of international law,” the statement reads.

Aleksandr Babakov believes that the international public must unequivocally condemn this aggression. “If in the near future NATO member countries and the whole military-political bloc fail to condemn this aggression and take vigorous measures to halt the hostilities, the organization’s real goals and aggressive nature will leave no-one in doubt,” the deputy speaker said. At the same time Aleksandr Babakov called for restraint. “We are a strong power. Hysterics, cries and hand-wringing is the lot of the weak,” his statement says.

Another member of A Just Russia, Gennadiy Gudkov, who is the deputy chairman of the party’s faction in the State Duma, believes, however, that Russia should refrain from using force. “Our country’s international reputation is at stake today. Russia’s actions today will determine attitude to it in the world,” Gennadiy Gudkov told journalists, as reported by RIA-Novosti at 1443 gmt on 8 August.

In his view, as the military conflict escalates, Russia “will have to stop talking and to act and carry out its treaty obligations”. Gudkov said that it’s Russia which is the guarantor of security in the region, primarily for the Russian citizens who live in the zone of conflict. “Russia must demand that hostilities be stopped immediately and show its force without using it for the time being,” Gudkov said as reported by RIA-Novosti.

“The Saakashvili regime pins hopes on support from its Western ‘friends’. It is using foreign weapons to kill civilians, including citizens of the Russian Federation who live in South Ossetia. But Saakashvili must remember that the South Ossetian people has not been abandoned. Great Russia is behind it,” a statement by the Patriots of Russia party reads, the same RIA-Novosti report says.

On the other hand, leader of Union of Right Forces [SPS] party Nikita Belykh believes that an intervention by Russian forces in the conflict between Georgia and South Ossetia must be avoided, the RIA- Novosti report went on to say. “The most stupid thing that can be done in this situation is a military response by Russia, like bringing in troops, because such an escalation of the conflict will result in casualties and this must not happen,” Nikita Belykh has told Ekho Moskvy radio. The SPS leader thinks that “Russia should use its status of member of the Council of Europe and international organizations to resolve the problem that has come about between itself, Georgia and South Ossetia by diplomatic means”. In his view, strong-arm actions by Russia “will aggravate relations between our countries, between Russia and the EU and Russia and NATO”.

In his turn, Chairman of the Yabloko party Sergey Mitrokhin believes that “this war may have catastrophic consequences for the entire Caucasus region, thus for Russia itself too”, the RIA- Novosti report continued. He thinks that in this conflict Russia should undertake functions of a mediator and apply all the levers at its disposal to influence the situation. At the same time our country should avoid military intervention in the conflict.

Yabloko believes that Russia should press for Georgia and South Ossetia signing a trilateral agreement which will include a renunciation of strong-arm methods for settling territorial disputes, the recognition of Georgia’s territorial integrity while investing its autonomies with broad rights of self-determination, and guarantees of return for all the refugees. “CIS countries should become a guarantor of the implementation of this agreement. We are calling on the NATO leadership to take off the agenda the issue of Georgia’s accession to this organization and postpone it for the future,” Mitrokhin concluded.

First deputy head of the One Russia faction Vladimir Pekhtin believes that both Georgia and South Ossetia should return to a peaceful format for resolving the conflict, sit at the negotiating table and halt hostilities, the 1443 gmt RIA-Novosti report said in conclusion. “Moreover, the current situation calls for intervention by representatives of other states, including Russia, as well as international organization,” Pekhtin told journalists on Friday. “Today, the day Olympic Games opened in Beijing, Georgia has in fact declared war on South Ossetia,” he said. “This is a blatant violation not only of their own pledges but, most importantly, of internaitonal law and ethics.”

At 1532 gmt RIA-Novosti quoted Vasiliy Likhachev, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee of Internaitonal Affairs, as saying that “the UN should act tough. First of all it should demand that hostilities in the region be halted immediately and talks between Tskhinvali and Tbilisi be organized.” Likhachev added that in this situation, after Russian peacekeepers in South Ossetia had suffered, the international community, first of all the UN, OSCE and EU, should make their attitude to the events clear. Likhachev said that the developments in South Ossetia would have hardly been possible if Georgia “had not felt support in the West, particularly in the USA”.

Originally published by ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow, in Russian 1510 08 Aug 08.

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