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Resolution 1647 (2009)
Implementation of Resolution 1633 (2008) on the consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia
1. The Parliamentary
Assembly fully reaffirms its Resolution
1633 (2008) on the consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia,
adopted on 2 October 2008. In this resolution, the Assembly strongly condemned
the outbreak of war between two of its member states and considered
that, during the war and its immediate aftermath, both countries
had violated human rights and principles of humanitarian law, as
well as the Statute of the Council of Europe (ETS No. 1) and specific
accession commitments made by the two countries. Therefore, the
Assembly placed a series of concrete demands on both Georgia and
Russia, as well as on the de facto authorities in South Ossetia
and in Abkhazia, including the demand on Russia to withdraw its
recognition of independence of these two break-away regions. In
so doing, the Assembly provided a transparent, impartial and concrete
roadmap to address the consequences of the war, not only for the
parties concerned, but also for the Assembly itself.
2. The Assembly welcomes the establishment, by the European Union,
on 2 December 2008, of an independent international fact-finding
mission on the conflict in Georgia to investigate the origins and
the course of the conflict, including with regard to international
law, humanitarian law and human rights and the accusations made
in that context. This is a crucial step towards establishing the
truth and providing the basis for future reconciliation between
Russia and Georgia. In this respect, the Assembly:
2.1. welcomes the support of both
Russia and Georgia for the establishment of an independent international
inquiry into the outbreak of the war and their declared willingness
to fully co-operate with it;
2.2. calls upon Russia and Georgia now to co-operate effectively,
fully and unconditionally with the European Union fact-finding mission;
2.3. calls upon all Council of Europe member states and states
that have observer status with the Organisation to make available
to the fact-finding mission any information, including satellite
data, that may be of relevance to the investigation;
2.4. calls upon the member states of the Council of Europe
which are also European Union members to ensure that the report
of the European Union mission is also presented to the Council of
Europe in order for its findings to be debated before the Assembly;
the Council of Europe shall continue to fulfil its own responsibilities
concerning this conflict between two of its member states;
2.5. resolves to return to the issue of the causes and precise
circumstances surrounding the outbreak of the war once the report
of the European Union mission has been presented.
3. The Assembly encourages all parties to pursue, in a constructive
spirit, the Geneva talks on the modalities of security and stability
in Abkhazia and South Ossetia with a view to introducing an incident prevention
mechanism, as proposed by the co-chairing organisations (the United
Nations, the Organisation for Security and co-operation in Europe
(OSCE) and the European Union). The Assembly supports the principle that
representatives of the inhabitants of South Ossetia and Abkhazia
at the beginning of August 2008, both supporters of the de facto
authorities and those that favour reintegration with Georgia, should
participate in these talks. It also insists that their status in
the talks should not violate Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The Assembly therefore calls upon all parties to agree on a formula
ensuring their participation without prejudice to the status of
the two break-away regions.
4. The Assembly condemns the recognition by Russia of the independence
of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and considers it to be a violation
of international law and of the Council of Europe’s statutory principles.
The Assembly reaffirms its attachment to the territorial integrity
and sovereignty of Georgia and reiterates its call on Russia to
withdraw its recognition of the independence of South Ossetia and
Abkhazia and to fully respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity
of Georgia, as well as the inviolability of its borders.
5. The Assembly is seriously concerned that the escalation of
tensions and provocations along the administrative borders of the
break-away regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia are undermining
the stability of the region and could lead to renewed clashes or
an outbreak of hostilities. It deplores in particular the recent attacks
on Georgian police officers in the areas close to the Abkhaz and
South Ossetian administrative borders. It considers that the full
access of international monitors to South Ossetia and Abkhazia,
as well as the establishment of a new internationalised peacekeeping
force in the region, are essential to guaranteeing stability and
security and should not be made conditional on the status issue.
The Assembly therefore:
5.1. deplores
the continued refusal of Russia and the de facto authorities to
allow access to OSCE monitors to South Ossetia and to European Union
monitors to both South Ossetia and Abkhazia;
5.2. deeply regrets the closure of the OSCE mission in Georgia
as a result of Russian objections over its exact mandate and calls
upon all parties, and especially the Russian authorities, to accept
a formula for the mandate of the OSCE mission, including its military
monitoring operation, in Georgia, that would not prejudice the status
of the two break-away regions;
5.3. welcomes the continued access of the United Nations Observer
Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) observers to Abkhazia and calls upon
all parties not to take any actions that would endanger the renewal of
the mandate of UNOMIG by the United Nations Security Council on
15 February 2009;
5.4. condemns the Russian non-mandated military presence and
the building of new military bases within the separatist regions
of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, as well as in Akhalgori, Perevi and
Upper Abkhazia and in villages controlled by the central government
of Georgia before the breakout of the conflict.
6. The Assembly reaffirms its full support for the sovereignty
and territorial integrity of Georgia, as well as the inviolability
of its borders. In this respect, it regrets the unanimous ratification
by both houses of the Russian Parliament of the “Friendship and
Co-operation” treaties between Russia and the two break-away regions,
in violation of these principles, as well as of the ceasefire agreement
of 12 August 2008.
7. The Assembly condemns the ethnic cleansing and other human
rights violations in South Ossetia, as well as the failure of Russia
and the de facto authorities to bring these practices to a halt
and their perpetrators to justice. The Assembly reiterates that,
under international law, Russia bears responsibility for violations
of human rights and humanitarian law in these areas which are under
its de facto control.
8. With respect to Georgia, the Assembly:
8.1. welcomes the constructive approach and clear political
will of the Georgian authorities to comply with the demands of the
Assembly as expressed in Resolution
1633 (2008) and considers that Georgia has complied with many, but
not all, of its demands;
8.2. calls upon the Georgian authorities to ensure that all
outstanding demands are promptly and fully complied with;
8.3. welcomes the establishment of an inquiry commission by
the Georgian Parliament as evidence that it is willing to reflect
on the actions and mistakes committed by the Georgian authorities
in the outbreak and in the course of the war. The Assembly notes
that this commission finalised its work and published its report
in December 2008 and calls upon the parliament to review its conclusions
in the light of the forthcoming report of the European Union fact-finding
mission;
8.4. in the light of the overwhelming evidence to the effect
that both Georgia and Russia violated human rights and humanitarian
law in the course of the war, welcomes the investigation launched
by the Georgian Prosecutor General’s Office into alleged human rights
and humanitarian law violations committed by both sides in the course
of the war and its aftermath, and calls upon it to investigate, impartially,
any alleged violations brought to its attention and ensure that
the perpetrators are brought to justice;
8.5. is concerned that provisions in the Georgian law on the
occupied territories may be at odds with principles of international
human rights law, including the European Convention on Human Rights
(ETS No. 5), and therefore calls upon Georgia to promptly implement
any recommendations contained in the forthcoming opinion of the
European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission)
on this law, which was requested by the Monitoring Committee of
the Assembly;
8.6. calls upon Georgia to refrain from any actions that could
provoke or increase tensions along the administrative borders with
South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
9. With respect to Russia, the Assembly:
9.1. takes note of the expressed intention of the Russian authorities
to engage in a constructive and open dialogue with the Assembly
in relation to the conflict;
9.2. welcomes the readiness expressed by the Russian parliamentarians
to engage in dialogue with their Georgian counterparts under the
aegis of the Assembly;
9.3. urges Russia to fully and unconditionally implement all
requirements of Resolution
1633 (2008) of the Parliamentary Assembly, including the withdrawal
of the recognition of the two break-away regions of Georgia, the
implementation of the European Union-brokered ceasefire agreement
of 12 August 2008, allowing OSCE and European Union monitors into
South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and to work towards the creation of
a new peacekeeping format and an internationalised peacekeeping
force, with the active participation of Council of Europe and European
Union member states;
9.4. specifically requests Russia to withdraw from the Akhalgori
district, Upper Abkhazia, the Georgian enclave around Tskhinvali
and Perevi village, and to reduce its military presence to pre-conflict levels;
9.5. calls upon Russia to implement fully and unconditionally
all points of the ceasefire agreement of 12 August 2008;
9.6. calls upon Russia to agree to renew the mandate of the
OSCE mission in Georgia, including its military monitoring operation;
9.7. calls upon Russia not to create any obstacles for the
renewal of the UNOMIG mandate in Abkhazia;
9.8. calls upon Russia to allow, without further delay, the
full access of all international monitors to South Ossetia and Abkhazia,
and especially to allow OSCE monitors access to South Ossetia and European
Union monitors access to South Ossetia and Abkhazia, without making
it conditional on the question of status;
9.9. calls upon Russia and the de facto authorities of South
Ossetia to ensure that there are no more acts of ethnic cleansing
and other human rights violations, which continue to occur in South
Ossetia, and bring the perpetrators promptly to justice;
9.10. calls upon Russia and the de facto authorities of both
regions to bring to an immediate halt the provocations and attacks
from the South Ossetian and Abkhaz sides of the administrative border
and to refrain from any actions that could provoke or increase tensions
along the administrative borders with South Ossetia and Abkhazia;
9.11. calls upon Russia and the de facto authorities to fully
ensure the right of return of all internally displaced persons to
the areas under their effective control;
9.12. in the light of the overwhelming evidence to the effect
that both Georgia and Russia violated human rights and humanitarian
law in the course of the war and in its aftermath, regrets that
the Russian Prosecutor’s Office has not yet started any investigation
into alleged human rights and humanitarian law violations committed
by Russian and allied South Ossetian forces. The Assembly calls
upon Russia to initiate such an investigation without further delay
and to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.
10. With respect to the de facto authorities in South Ossetia,
the Assembly notes that they have generally complied with the demand
to exchange prisoners of war but regrets that they have failed to
co-operate with international monitoring missions and are placing
unreasonable restrictions on the access of humanitarian organisations
to South Ossetia.
11. The Assembly calls upon both Russia and Georgia to:
11.1. allow unhindered and unconditional
access of humanitarian organisations and humanitarian aid to the
areas of South Ossetia and Abkhazia;
11.2. sign, without further delay, the United Nations Convention
on Cluster Munitions;
11.3. implement the interim measures ordered by the European
Court of Human Rights and the International Court of Justice, as
well as any forthcoming judgments of these courts concerning alleged violations
of human rights in the course of the conflict, and to co-operate
fully and unconditionally with any possible investigation by the
International Criminal Court;
11.4. work constructively towards the creation of a new peacekeeping
format and internationalised peacekeeping force.
12. The Assembly welcomes the ongoing efforts by the Council of
Europe Commissioner for Human Rights to protect human rights and
humanitarian security in the region. It calls upon both Russia and
Georgia to ensure that the six principles he formulated in this
respect are fully and effectively implemented.
13. The Assembly is especially concerned about the human rights
and humanitarian situation in Perevi, Upper Abkhazia, and in the
Akhalgori district, as well as about the status of the Akhagori
district which, while technically a part of the former autonomous
region (oblast) of South Ossetia,
was never under the control of the de facto authorities and has
always been mainly populated by ethnic Georgians. In this respect,
it takes note that the Akhalgori district was occupied by Russian
forces on 15 August 2008, three days after the signing of the ceasefire
agreement.
14. The Assembly considers it unacceptable that persons residing
in Abkhazia and South Ossetia should not be effectively covered
by the human rights protection mechanisms granted to them as citizens
of a Council of Europe member state under the European Convention
on Human Rights, as well as other relevant Council of Europe conventions,
as a result of the consequences of the war between Russia and Georgia.
Such a human rights protection black hole should not be allowed
to exist within the Council of Europe area. The Assembly therefore
invites the Secretary General of the Council of Europe to develop
a comprehensive action plan to ensure that the rights guaranteed
under the Convention are effectively secured for persons residing
in South Ossetia and Abkhazia. This could include the establishment
of a field presence in the two break-away regions, as demanded by
the Assembly in Resolution
1633 (2008), including an ombudsperson who could examine individual
applications in cases of human rights violations. In the absence
of other credible investigations, this field presence should also
investigate and document human rights violations committed during
and in the aftermath of the war.
15. The Assembly reconfirms its conviction that the establishment
of a genuine dialogue is the only way forward for the resolution
of any conflict and to secure long-term stability in the region,
provided the minimum conditions for meaningful dialogue as defined
in Resolution 1633 (2008) are met. It therefore tasks its Bureau to set up in
due course a special ad hoc committee, in which both Georgian and
Russian parliamentarians will be invited to participate, to discuss
their differences and develop concrete proposals to address the consequences
of the war, in line with Resolution
1633 (2008). The Assembly would also welcome the possible participation
of representatives of the Abkhaz and South Ossetian communities,
from both the de facto authorities and those that favour integration
with Georgia, in the work of the committee, subject to an agreement
on the format of their participation.
16. The Assembly calls upon the European Union to continue to
seek effective ways for the peaceful resolution of the Georgian-Russian
conflict, including the strengthening and extension of the mandate
of the European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) to cover protection
and peacekeeping functions on both sides of the de facto borders
of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and other parts of the former conflict
zones that are presently occupied.
17. Having considered the consequences of the war between Georgia
and Russia on other so-called “frozen conflicts” in Europe, the
Assembly calls on Council of Europe member states to intensify their
diplomatic efforts in order to find solutions which avoid violent
confrontation. At the same time, the Assembly should intensify its activities
on these matters, in particular as regards Nagorno-Karabakh and
Transnistria.
18. The Assembly reiterates its commitment to play a role in the
field of conflict prevention and, in this context, welcomes the
establishment of an ad hoc sub-committee on early warning systems
and conflict prevention in Europe within its Political Affairs Committee.
19. The Assembly invites its Monitoring Committee to monitor the
follow-up given by Russia and Georgia to this resolution, as well
as to its Resolution
1633 (2008), and to report back to the Assembly at the second part-session
in April 2009. It also reiterates its request that the Monitoring
Committee step up its monitoring procedure with respect to both
Georgia and Russia.