TBILISI. June 20 (Interfax-AVN) - The Georgian authorities doubt that it is necessary to continue negotiations with Abkhazia in the framework of the UN Coordination Council that were interrupted due to Chechen warlord Ruslan Gelaev gang's raid in the Kodori Gorge in 2001.
Commenting to reporters on Sukhumi's readiness to resume negotiations in the framework of the Council, Deputy Georgian Foreign Minister Merab Antadze declared that "the format of the Council will not be used for solution of the main problems."
"There is the Georgian party's approach," he said.
Antadze noted that the Council's creation through a lot of efforts in 1997 made the negotiating process on Georgian-Abkhaz settlement international.
At the same time, according to him, the Abkhaz party repeatedly used "methods of blackmail" that blocked the Council's work.
"Such attitude to the work and such format have exhausted their resources," he said.
According to him, Georgia prefers negotiations in the framework of the UN Secretary General's Group of Friends on Georgia (Germany, France, Great Britain, Russia and the U.S.). The group's first meeting took place in Geneva in June, the second one is scheduled for the end of July.
"Recommendations are passed and foundations elaborated there," Antadze said.
He did not rule out that both parties to the conflict would be invited to the July meeting.