Russia and Georgia recognize EU ceasefire principle

French President Nicolas Sarkozy (front left) and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev issued statements.

　　Georgia and Russia agreed in principle to the six ceasefire principles proposed by the European Union on 13th, but Russia has reservations about some contents of the ceasefire agreement. On the 12th, Georgian President Saakashvili said that Georgia had decided to leave the CIS, which Russia regretted.

　　In addition, the foreign ministers of the 27 EU countries have obvious differences on whether Russia should bear the consequences of the Georgia-Russia conflict. The United States said that it had cancelled the US-Russia joint naval exercise plan.

　　Russia and Georgia agree on six principles in principle.

　　French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, said in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, on the 13th that Georgia and Russia agreed in principle to the six ceasefire principles proposed by the European Union, including "renunciation of the use of force".

　　These six ceasefire principles have been revised according to the requirements of Russia and Georgia. Sarkozy said: "On the phone, we discussed with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev twice what Georgia requested to modify. We deleted the status of South Ossetia from the document. " The cease-fire agreement mainly includes a cease-fire, the withdrawal of all troops to their barracks, the opening of humanitarian corridors, the clarification of the status of Russian peacekeeping forces and the determination of measures for the country’s stable development.

　　Answering a reporter’s question on the latest situation in South Ossetia on the 13th, Qin Gang, spokesman of Russian Foreign Ministry, said that China welcomes China’s decision to end its military operations in the conflict zone between Georgia and South Ossetia.

　　Russia: It will not negotiate with President Georgia.

　　Saakashvili and Sarkozy said that the next stage of negotiations between Georgia and Russia should be based on these six ceasefire principles. However, Russia seems to have ruled out the possibility of negotiations with Saakashvili. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said: "Saakashvili had better resign." But he said that Russia has no intention of ousting Saakashvili. Sarkozy expressed the hope that Georgia and Russia could sign a ceasefire agreement.

　　Lavrov has reservations about some of the contents of the Georgia-Russia ceasefire agreement supported by the EU: "Russia supports the line of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the EU, that is, it is very important for the two sides to sign a ceasefire agreement, but we question several principles of the agreement."

　　RIA Novosti reported on the 13th that Russia is mainly opposed to restoring the peacekeeping mode in South Ossetia to the structure before the conflict between Georgian troops and armed personnel in South Ossetia broke out on August 7. Lavrov said: "It is difficult for us to agree, because it means that Georgia’s so-called peacekeepers will stay in South Ossetia." He stressed: "Georgian peacekeepers can’t stay there."

　　Georgia: 50 Russian tanks entered the important place.

　　However, Alexander Lomaya, secretary of the Georgian National Security Council, declared that about 50 Russian tanks entered the Georgian strategic fortress Gori. Lomaya said on the 13th that Russian tanks entered Gori at 9: 45 am (1: 45 pm Beijing time). This time interval is about eight hours since Georgia accepted six ceasefire principles.

　　The Russian military strongly denied Lomaya’s statement. An eyewitness said: "I traveled all over Gori and didn’t (see) tanks or Russian soldiers." Gori is located about 25 kilometers south of Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia. Western and Georgian media previously reported that Russian troops bombed Georgian civilian facilities, including Gori, which was denied by Russia.

　　Georgia decided to withdraw from CIS.

　　The conflict in the past few days has caused a sharp deterioration in Georgia-Russia relations. Georgian President Saakashvili said at a mass rally on the 12th that Georgia has made a decision to leave the Commonwealth of Independent States. Saakashvili also said that Georgia has made a series of important decisions, including withdrawing from the CIS and declaring South Ossetia and Abkhazia as occupied territories. On the same day, Russian First Deputy Foreign Minister Denisov responded that Russia regretted Georgia’s decision. Gustorff, chairman of the CIS Affairs Committee of the Russian Federation Council, said that Saakashvili often announced his withdrawal from the CIS, as he did six months ago. I may really want to quit this time, but it will not bring any disaster to the CIS. CIS is the abbreviation of Commonwealth of Independent States, with 12 member countries, namely Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Russia, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

　　EU: No statement in case of disagreement

　　The foreign ministers of the 27 EU countries are scheduled to hold an emergency meeting on the 13th to discuss the six ceasefire principles between Georgia and Russia. Reuters quoted an EU official as saying that the foreign ministers of the 27 countries will not issue a joint statement that day. The foreign ministers have obvious differences on whether Russia should bear the consequences of the Georgia-Russia conflict.

　　Lithuanian Foreign Minister Vaiti Kunnas said that Russia’s unacceptable excessive use of force should bear the consequences. However, Cypriot Foreign Minister Márkos Kyprianoú decided: "If the EU intends to act as a mediator, it must remain objective and neutral. We must be cautious when taking steps. " Asked whether the EU would sanction Russia, kyprianou replied: "I don’t think so today."

　　United States: Cancel the United States-Russia joint military exercise

　　According to reports, the retaliatory measures taken by the U.S. government against Russia include canceling the joint U.S.-Russia naval exercise, boycotting a planned meeting between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Russia, and reducing contacts between the G-7 and Russia. After Russia announced the ceasefire, the Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations called the Russian action "positive". A White House spokesman also said that the United States is evaluating Russia’s decision to end its military operations in Georgia. (Contributed by Xinhua News Agency)

　　Chain connection

　　Our embassy in Georgia should make emergency plans.

　　You Yimao, secretary of the Commercial Counsellor’s Office of the Embassy of China in Georgia, recently said that the emergency plan of the Embassy has been launched and the evacuation plan for local Chinese and overseas Chinese has been issued.

　　It is understood that there are 400 to 500 overseas Chinese in Georgia, and there are more than a dozen Chinese-funded enterprises. The vast majority of Chinese and overseas Chinese live in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, which is far from the area where military conflicts have occurred. You Yimao, secretary of the embassy, said that the staff of the embassy paid close attention to the local situation, made judgments and assessments on the development of the situation, made emergency plans, and kept in touch with China citizens in Georgia, ready to provide them with emergency assistance at any time.

Editor: Zhang Renhe