Luxembourg - European Union governments remained split
Monday over whether to resume cooperation talks with Russia because
of profound divisions within the 27-member bloc about which
conditions they want Moscow to meet first.
At a meeting in Luxembourg, EU foreign ministers 'noted with
satisfaction that ... Russian troops have withdrawn from the zones
adjacent to (the Georgian breakaway regions of) South Ossetia and
Abkhazia,' as reported last week by observers from the EU and from
the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
However, while the move is 'an essential additional step' in the
implementation of an EU-sponsored peace plan, 'discussions must focus
on all the remaining problems,' ministers said in a joint statement.
These include 'arrangements for stability and security in the
region', the return of Georgian refugees, and Russia's continued
presence in the disputed areas of the Kodori valley and the Akhalgori
region, both of which lie on the borders between core Georgia and the
two separatist enclaves.
At an emergency summit held on September 1, EU governments agreed
to freeze talks on a new Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA)
with Russia because of its 'disproportionate use of force' against
Georgia and its violation of the country's territorial integrity.
The PCA is a contract governing matters such as trade, investment,
environmental protection, tourism, and cultural exchanges between the
EU and Russia.
Leaders at the time vowed to resume PCA talks once Russian troops
had 'withdrawn to the positions held prior to 7 August.'
But Russia's subsequent decision to reinforce its presence in
South Ossetia and Abkhazia with up to 8,000 troops has since prompted
some EU states to argue that a pull-out from core Georgia is no
longer sufficient.
'Discussions are continuing on the situation in the Alkhagori
region,' Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet told Deutsche
Presse-Agentur dpa in Luxembourg.
'Secondly, there's the issue of the amount of troops in Abkhazia
and South Ossetia, which are now at least four times what they were
before the conflict escalated.
'And a third point is the lack of access to Abkhazia and South
Ossetia for EU and OSCE monitors,' Paet said.
The plight of Georgian refugees, and the search for a political
solution to Georgia's current predicament, now move on to Geneva,
where diplomats and experts are due to hold peace talks on Wednesday.
And the future of the PCA will be discussed by EU foreign
ministers meeting on the sidelines of an EU summit taking place in
Brussels on the same day.
According to French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, who chaired
Monday's talks in Luxembourg, it is 'very difficult to flag up a date
for resuming (the PCA) negotiations.'
That view was shared by many of his colleagues.
'On the PCA, opinions differ as to when it would be the right or
logical moment to decide on restarting the talks,' Latvia's Maris
Riekstins told dpa.
The Baltic trio, flanked by Britain, Poland and Sweden, have taken
a particularly tough stance towards Russia, with Britain's David
Miliband saying EU governments should first focus on ensuring that
'all the elements that were agreed in September, including the Geneva
talks, get going with proper speed.'
But that view is not shared by heavyweights Italy and Germany,
with Germany's minister of state for Europe, Gunter Gloser, saying
Monday that negotiations should resume as soon as possible.
'There is no advantage, not even for the Baltics, to keep Russia
out,' Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said.
Most ministers agreed that a decision on the future of relations
with Russia should be reached before an EU-Russia summit due to take
place in Nice on November 14. That meeting is still on the agenda.
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