Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
March 10, 2006 Friday
RUSSIAN TROOPS OUT OF GEORGIA BY DECEMBER 31, 2007;
The government confirmed a project of the corresponding agreement
Last week, the government confirmed the project of the agreement
about withdrawal of Russian military bases from the territory of
Georgia presented by the Russian Federation Defense Minister. This
event passed almost without any attention from the side of mass
media. However, this event could be regarded as an important step for
the Russian leadership, which lets determine the mechanism of
withdrawal of Russian contingents from Akhalkalaki and Batumi, as
well as forecast, to some extent, the policy of the Russian
Federation in the Transcaucasia region.
For realization of the agreement, the Russian Federation Defense
Ministry will provide 836.7 million roubles in 2006. In 2007 – 820.5
million roubles, in 2008 – 510.6 million roubles. As we see, the sums
are significant – more than 2 billion roubles. However, it seems that
there would be much more expenses since the withdrawn troops will
have to be located in new places, and provide apartments for those
who are in need etc. But they do not think about that today. The
government has another task – to withdraw the troops as soon as
possible.
It is of no accident that the Russian side agreed to confirm the
document in a written form – to confirm that the Russian military
bases in Batumi and Akhakalaki function in the terminating regime. It
is noted that the withdrawl of Russian military hardware would be
realized by the end of 2006. It was reported before that great part
of that hardware would go to Armenia. Despite protests of Azerbaijan,
the Georgian side does not interfere with that. Meanwhile, it is
noted that everything will be terminated by October 1, 2007, “but in
any case the date of December 31, 2007 is the limit”.
“The complete withdrawal of the Russian military base in Batumi, as
well as department of the Russian troops grouping in Transcaucasia
will be realized during the year 2008”, it is noted in the project of
the agreement.
The Russian side is obliged not to use military bases and objects for
purposes aimed against state interests of Georgia, and do not allow
running shootings from all kinds of armament, excluding rifles and
machine-guns in special places provided by the Georgian side. In the
project’s text, it is noted that “the Russian side is obliged not to
have, to store or to transact weapons of mass destruction through the
territory of Georgia, as well as not to run research aimed at
developing such armament”. The project of the document foresees that
the agreement would be in legal force until December 31, 2008, in
case “if neither side would inform the other one through diplomatic
channels about its intention to stop the power of the agreement in
case of its essential infringement by the other side”. In this case,
the law power of the agreement ends 30 days after such declaration
made.
In this way, de jure, in the project of the agreement, the
obligations of the Russian side are mentioned. However, the Georgian
side also have some. In the document it is noted that the Georgian
side, in correspondence with the document, is to provide Russia with
possibility to dispatch extra hardware needed for the process of
withdrawal. In this connection, the Georgian authorities are obliged
to provide the opportunity of using the air space of Georgia for
aircraft of the Russian Federation Defense Ministry, as well as
provide railway, road and air transportation of armament and military
hardware.
At that, the Georgian side is obliged to provide a sensible vital
activity and temporary functioning of the Russian military bases and
objects until the termination of the withdrawal process. The project
of the agreement foresees that the Georgian side will provide a
simplified procedure for the Navy ships arriving to Georgian ports,
for removal of armament and military hardware. Aiming at control over
the fulfilling of this document’s clauses, the sides are intended to
establish a joint Russian-Georgian commission, which would operate in
Tbilisi.
In this way, the project of the Russian-Georgian agreement in its
draft variant is fascinating. Meanwhile, Russian soldiers feel
themselves aliens – they do not even have visas. Official services
and persons provoke them anyway they like. Presidents Vladimir Putin
and Mikhail Saakashvili may terminate all this, who are to sign the
coordinated law-project. However, the date of their meeting has not
been fixed yet.
Source: WPS own observer
Translated by Denis Shcherbakov