TBILISI. Sept 10 (Interfax-AVN) - Representatives of the OSCE mission in Georgia are concerned about the fact that Georgia and South Ossetia are mining the conflict area.
According to information possessed by the OSCE, the conflicting parties are reinforcing their defense facilities, including making dugouts and mining the area, Roy Reeve, the head of the OSCE mission to Georgia, told reporters on Friday.
Reeve said the mining is absolutely unacceptable and the matter will be discussed with the defense ministries of Georgia and South Ossetia.
The OSCE Permanent Council will meet in Vienna on September 16 to discuss the increase of OSCE observers in the Georgian- Ossetian conflict area, Reeve said. The issue has been discussed with Georgia and South Ossetia, he said.
Tskhinvali is not against increasing the number of observers, but is opposed to widening the area they are responsible for, Reeve said.
There are currently five OSCE observers in the conflict area and a final decision on their number will be made in Vienna, Reeve said. He added that he would like this number to be increased to twenty.
Reeve also called for putting order to movement of people in military uniform in the conflict zone.
According to him, there are many people wearing uniform without insignia or straps in the conflict zone. The OSCE asks the parties to provide them with IDs and stripes, so that it would be possible to determine legitimacy of their presence in the conflict zone.
Reeve stressed that the OSCE considers it necessary to let only servicemen of the Joint Peacekeeping Force and legitimate representatives of the parties' law-enforcement agencies be present in the area.