TBILISI. Sept 19 (Interfax) - Georgia is concerned about the ongoing militarization of Abkhazia and South Ossetia and military exercises held in those territories, representatives of the Georgian Foreign Ministry said at a meeting with UN, OSCE, and EU officers before the next round of the Geneva Consultations on Security and Stability in the South Caucasus.
Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister David Dondua has discussed the agenda of the next round of the Geneva Consultations, which will take place on October 9 and 10, with Cihan Sultanoglu of the United Nations, Rudolf Michalka of the OSCE, and Toivo Klaar of the European Union, the Georgian Foreign Ministry press service said.
"Emphasis was put on the need for making progress in key items on the agenda, such as the non-use of force, the creation of international security guarantees on the ground, and the return of internally displaced persons home," the ministry said.
Georgia has also highlighted the detention of its citizens on counts of border violations. Tbilisi does not recognize the border with Abkhazia and South Ossetia and believes it is unlawful to detain people for alleged border trespassing.
Dondua expressed concern about South Ossetia's thwarting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) meeting on September 14, which was supposed to address the latest incidents.
The Georgian diplomat described those steps as "destructive" and expressed hope that the world would ensure smooth operation of the IPRM, the ministry said.
South Ossetian representatives left the IPRM meeting on September 14 to protest against Georgia's inclusion in the agenda of the death of Georgian citizen Archil Tatunashvili in Tskhinval in late February and the death of Georgian citizen David Basharuli, who was detained in June 2014 and found hanged in a forest. Tbilisi insists that the deaths of both Georgian citizens be thoroughly investigated and refuses to remove those items from the agenda of IPRM meetings.