18/08/2009 20:00 ABKHAZIA, SUKHUM
To the Chairman of the United Nations Security Council
John Sawers
To the European Union High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy
Javier Solana
To the President of the French Republic
Nicolas Sarkozy
Open appeal
On August 17, 2009 the Georgian coast guards seized once again a merchant vessel going to Abkhazia from Turkey. The tanker under the Turkish flag, bound for the port of Sukhum, was detained in neutral waters and towed off to the Georgian port of Poti. This year it is already the third case of the Georgian piracy.
This incident testifies to continuation of Georgia’s policy aimed at destabilization of the situation in the region. At that it uses different methods of both political and economic pressure on Abkhazia. Moreover, the Georgian authorities do not also shun numerous acts of terrorism one of which was committed by special services of Georgia on August 12 in Gagra which resulted in 2 victims.
Abkhazia rested hopes on the Medvedev-Sarkozy plan of August 12 and September 8, 2008, the Geneva consultations on security and stability in the region, as well as on the pentalateral mechanism on incidents prevention and investigation on the border of Abkhazia with Georgia. However Georgia’s provocative actions and silence of the international community, the European Union first of all, which has repeatedly stated it sees its task in normalization of the situation and assistance in stabilization of the situation in the region, force us to doubt these mechanisms efficiency.
Absence of an adequate assessment of the official Tbilisi’s actions from the part of numerous international observers and the international community is viewed by the Abkhaz side as purposeful encouragement of the Georgia’s aggressive policy which can lead to a new tension escalation.
Taking the above-stated into consideration, Abkhazia asks you to give an adequate assessment of the Georgia’s actions and to demand from it to stop destabilizing the situation. Viability and the Abkhazia’s attitude to the developed international mechanisms on conflicts prevention in the region will depend on how much the international community can influence Georgia with a view of non-admission of new provocations and destabilization of the situation.
We also ask your assistance in returning the vessel seized by the Georgian coast guards. Otherwise the Abkhaz side reserves to itself the right to undertake proportional measures on protecting the cargoes going to Abkhazia, and lays the blame for possible consequences on the Georgian side.
The President of the Republic of Abkhazia
Sergey Bagapsh
August 18, 2009
abkhaziagov.org
