Azerbaijani Prisoner of War, Stepanakert, Republic of Nagorno Karabakh © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 1994

True, we’ve been here before with the media reporting that a solution to the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh might finally be in sight, but the possibility for peace is once again resurfacing. However, such hopes have always been dashed at the last moment, but what makes the situation different this time round is the active involvement of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in convening a meeting between his Armenia and Azerbaijani counterparts tomorrow in Moscow. RFE/RL has more.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will meet his Armenian and Azerbaijani counterparts in Moscow on November 2 for potentially decisive talks on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, it was officially announced on Wednesday.

[…]

Medvedev announced his initiative following upbeat statements on Karabakh peace prospects made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. In an October 7 interview with the “Rossiiskaya Gazeta” daily, Lavrov described as “very real” chances for the resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict. “There remain two or three unresolved issues which need to be agreed upon at the next meetings of the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan,” he said.

The full post where comments can be left is available on The Caucasian Knot.

Mikhail Saakashvili, Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008

The Georgian president, Mikhail Saakashvili, has responded to recognition of the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia by his Russian counterpart, Dmitri Medvedev. Civil Georgia reports that Saakashvili has called the move a “strategic mistake,” the comments came in a televised address to the nation made yesterday.

“I want everyone to understand one thing: today’s Russian step is totally illegal, with no legal consequences either for Georgia or the rest of the world,” he said.

In his 20-minute address, Saakashvili focused on, as he put it, the importance of the international support that Georgia had gained following the crisis.

“Today, yesterday and in recent weeks, Russia made unimaginable strategic mistakes and struck an unimaginable blow to its place in the international community and in the history of the contemporary world,” he said. “Now Georgia has gained huge international support and solidarity from all over the world and support for our territorial integrity, and we would have failed to gain such huge support, even if we had tried for 200 years, if not for the mistakes made by Russia.”

“The end of the revival of Russia’s imperialism has started today in Georgia,” Saakashvili added.

The full post is available on The Caucasian Knot.

Russian Roadblock, Gori, Republic of Georgia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008

With reports that much of Russia’s military presence in Georgia has been withdrawn, reflection on a serious conflict which threatened to ignite the entire South Caucasus is becoming more and more the order of the day. For whatever reasons, and whoever is to blame, the conflict between Russia and Georgia was the most serious for years. Despite Russian claims of thousands dead, hundreds died in South Ossetia and Georgia proper, and tens of thousands lost their homes in military action reminiscent of the ethnic cleansing which devastated the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s.

Without a doubt, fallout from the confict — especially as allegations of abusing a truce agreement continue to be levelled at Russia — will resonate for some time to come. The BBC reports, for example, that while Russian combat troops have pulled out of Georgia proper, other troops under the premise of peacekeeping will remain which potentially allow Moscow to maintain the effective division of the country between East and West thanks to control of parts of the highway around Gori.

Ostensibly a “buffer zone,” questions are now being asked as to what is the real reason for their presence, especially as Russia also intends to remain in the Georgian Black Sea port of Poti.

France brokered the ceasefire to end fighting over Georgia’s pro-Russian breakaway province of South Ossetia.

Its terms are vague about the extent of any buffer zones, analysts say.

A White House spokesman, Gordon Johndroe, said the checkpoints and buffer zones set up by Russia were not part of the ceasefire agreement.

A spokesman for the French foreign ministry, Eric Chevalier, said a United Nations Security Council resolution was needed to clarify exactly what the ceasefire agreement covers.

The Russian military say they intend to maintain a peacekeeping presence in Georgia, controlling buffer zones around both South Ossetia and the other breakaway province, Abkhazia.

The zones include sections of the main highway from the capital Tbilisi to the Black Sea as well as Georgia’s main airbase at Senaki.

[…]

BBC diplomatic correspondent Jonathan Marcus says Western diplomats fear that Moscow is determined to define the parameters of the interim security arrangements on its own terms.

Part of the problem, he adds, is the extraordinary vagueness of the EU-brokered ceasefire deal, which speaks only of “additional security measures” in “the immediate proximity of South Ossetia” - proximity being defined as a distance of “several kilometres”.

The full post is available on The Caucasian Knot.

Gori, Republic of Georgia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008

After the failed attempt to enter the Russian-occupied town of Gori in a convoy organized by the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the European Union on Saturday, another opportunity emerged two days later when Moscow indicated it would give the order for its troops to leave the town the same day. Nobody believed them, of course, but the international media pack in town had to be there just in case. Reuters had decided to leave for Gori at 7 in the morning while AFP would start out a little later at 9.30.

Given that we had to get into Gori, a town where 90 percent of the population had already fled following Russian cluster-bomb attacks and where Russian troops now patrolled the streets, we decided to leave at 8.30 am. The plan was to travel alongside the New York Times’ car which would otherwise try to sneak in if the Russians weren’t true to their word. Despite the risk of running into South Ossetian militia, the need to find alternate routes into Gori really was necessary.

Just under 50 miles from Tbilisi, the birthplace of the Soviet dictator Josef Stalin was now the most strategically important town in the country. Controlling it, especially after the bombing of a railway bridge on the outskirts of nearby Kaspi, the Russians had effectively cut off the main transport route connecting East and West. Most of its inhabitants had fled creating a considerable problem with IDPs and everyone was expecting the Russians to finally leave.

And for a while at least all indications where that this might happen. In the last part of the Georgian-controlled section of the Gori road, dozens of local police dressed smartly and brandishing semi-automatic weapons stood alongside the road with their vehicles parked a little way ahead. It seemed more like preparations for a publicity event than security, and after passing the first Russian military checkpoint at Igoeti, there even appeared to be less tanks dug-in alongside of the road.

Russian military petrol tankers were heading towards Tbilisi as well, as if to refuel any vehicles for the journey back to South Ossetia. Closer to Gori, dozens of cars and vans transporting the international media brigade to Gori stood in line at another Russian military checkpoint where soldiers checked passports. Perhaps the first sign that all was not as it seemed came when one Georgian photographer was told in no uncertain terms, “Take any photographs and we’ll smash your cameras.”

Already the signs were ominous and our worst fears were confirmed when an effective convoy of journalists from the BBC, ABC, CNN, Reuters, AFP, AP and many more reached the final roadblock a mile outside Gori. Refused entry, Russian soldiers instructed the media that they were not authorized to enter until an unnamed General arrived to escort us in. No prizes for guessing that the General in question never materialized.

The full post is available on The Caucasian Knot.

IDP, Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008

With some very real doubts and concerns raised by Moscow’s inability to withdraw its troops from urban centers such as Gori as well as ethnic-Georgian populated towns and villages in West Georgia and South Ossetia, the number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Tbilisi is considerable.

And while the number of IDPs varies given the random and uncoordinated nature of their arrival in the Georgian capital, one thing is certain. They number in their tens of thousands and create further problems for a country still having to deal with hundreds of thousands of displaced persons from previous conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. UNHCR has already detailed the extent of the problem and its contribution to a $58.5 million emergency fund.

The latest estimates of displacement related to the conflict total more than 158,700 people – based on figures provided by the Georgian and Russian governments. It is reported that up to 30,000 people are displaced within South Ossetia. In addition, some 98,000 people are displaced in Georgia proper, including most of the population of the town of Gori. Russian officials in North Ossetia indicate some 30,000 people from South Ossetia are still in the Russian Federation.

UNHCR urgently needs additional funds to ensure continued assistance to the newly displaced population in the Caucasus region. Our part of the US$58.5 million Georgia Crisis flash appeal, launched yesterday in New York, amounts to US$16 million for the next six months. This will cover UNHCR’s protection, shelter and assistance programmes for the newly displaced in the Caucasus region.

The full post is available on The Caucasian Knot.

Russian soldier, Igoeti, Republic of Georgia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008

It was meant to be the day to check the situation of IDPs in Tbilisi, the Georgian capital, but a routine call to a government media coordinator changed all of that. Peter Semenby, EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus, and Urmas Paet, the Estonian Foreign Minister, were planning to visit Gori, the strategic town occupied by Russian forces 47 miles West of Tbilisi.

With numerous cases of journalists being targeted and even killed in and around Gori, the chance to enter was one that couldn’t be missed. The town had already been hit twice by Russian cluster bombs and most of the population had fled. South Ossetian militia were operating in the area and Georgians as well as international organization staff were most adamant — DO NOT visit Gori.

The International News Safety Institute (INSI) explains why:

Widespread looting is being reported in Gori with reports that some news teams were forced to give up their equipment.

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On Sunday, a BBC team near a Russian checkpoint came under rocket fire from aircraft near Gori. No one was wounded but they had a narrow escape.

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Journalists should still be extremely cautious around Gori and I would caution against going north to any of the villages en route to Tshinvali / Chinvali

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Russian General Viacheslav Borisov refused to assume responsibility for lives of the journalists in Gori.

Georgian journalist of GPB TV Company Tamar Urushadze was shot presumably by sniper in live broadcast near Gori. Journalist was slightly wounded in the hand.

Four Israeli journalists, including Haaretz correspondent Anshel Pfeffer and photographer Nir Kafri, were robbed at gunpoint by Russian soldiers in the Georgian city of Gori.

Russian military attacked operator of Georgian TV Rustavi2 and threatening with gun he prevented journalist to implement his duties near Gori.

Early afternoon. 3 journalists of Canadian CBC TV including head of the Moscow office were robbed of their car, equipment and other belongings by paramilitary presumably of North Caucasian origin near Gori. Accident happened near Russian soldiers who took no efforts to stop the robbery.

[…]

Czech journalists were robbed in the vicinity of the town of Gori last night. Several persons attacked them and took away their car and video and photo cameras. The journalists have said that the assailants were not Russians. They assume that the marauders looked like Chechens. After an hour-long captivity the journalists arrived in Tbilisi on foot although they were unable to reclaim the cameras or other technical means.

[…]

A Georgian journalist covering his country’s conflict with Russia was killed Tuesday when a shell hit their car in Gori city, an AFP photographer at the scene said.

His driver also died in the mid-morning incident, said the photographer, who saw the journalist’s ID card and the stricken vehicle in the main square of Gori alongside a huge statue of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin.

[…]

A Dutch television journalist was killed overnight when Russian warplanes bombed the central Georgian city of Gori.

[…]

The television news station RTL reported on its Web site that its cameraman Stan Storimans, 39, was killed and correspondent Jeroen Akkermans was wounded in the leg in the attack. RTL said, in all, five people died in the Gori bombing.

The full post is available on The Caucasian Knot.

Mikhail Saakashvili, Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008

Almost everybody was waiting for Friday’s joint press conference with the U.S. Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, and the Georgian president, Mikhail Saakashvili — literally. With Georgian forces having been defeated by the Russian military in South Ossetia and parts of Georgia proper now under Moscow’s control, over a hundred journalists turned up at the new presidential palace currently under construction in Tbilisi.

Condoleezza Rice had brought with her a six-point ceasefire agreement for Saakashvili to sign, and neither seemed to be too happy with it. Rice was stern-faced and Saakashvili at times exasperated and flustered. Neither, perhaps, was as exhausted as the media pack which had to wait three hours for the scheduled press conference to begin in the scorching sun. Still, the presidential staff did supply free chilled Georgian mineral water after the first hour of waiting.

And I suppose when Russian troops are literally less than forty minutes away from your capital, it’s no wonder that proceedings were so delayed. Unfortunately, however, one film crew from the BBC couldn’t wait any longer and nor could journalists from some other significant international publications. As for myself, I have to admit, I was as interested in witnessing the Georgian president speak in person.

In a joint news conference with Ms Rice following nearly five hours of talks, Mr Saakashvili said he would never accept any part of his country being occupied.

He gave an emotional address, referring to Russia as “cold-blooded killers” and “barbarians”, and he said that Georgia was now “looking evil directly in the eye”.

But Mr Saakashvili also criticised the West for failing to react strongly enough to previous Russian military moves and for not granting his country Nato membership earlier this year.

Ms Rice said that Russia had to accept Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and demanded a withdrawal of all Russia military from Georgia “at once”.

But as the pair spoke, there were reports of Russian anti-personnel carriers moving closer towards the Georgian capital, setting up a new checkpoint about 35km (22 miles) outside Tbilisi.

The full post is available on The Caucasian Knot.

Full coverage of the military confrontation between Russia and Georgia over the breakaway territory of South Ossetia can be found on The Caucasian Knot. In particular, the site links to opinion and commentary from bloggers, journalists and analysts. The Caucasian Knot is at http://blog.oneworld.am,

The BBC reports that it’s now official. The Georgian president, Mikhail Saakashvili, has been re-elected with 52.8 percent of the vote. The main opposition candidate, Levan Gachechiladze, received 27 percent of the vote.

Earlier in the day, Mr Gachechiladze told thousands of supporters in the capital Tbilisi that results had been “falsified”.

In a snowbound square on Sunday, the Orthodox Christmas Eve, he told the crowd: “We will defend our vote by legal means.”

However, international observer missions applauded the conduct of the election.

US Congressman Alcee Hastings of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), said: “I perceive this election as a valid expression of the choice of the Georgian people.”

He said there had been some shortcomings - notably that Mr Saakashvili’s campaign had overlapped with state activities, and this “contributed to an inequitable campaign environment”.

[…]

The United States urged the opposition to respect the monitors’ verdict.

Russia, however, called that verdict “hasty” and “superficial”.

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Railway Station, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2007

Sure to concern many already alarmed at the near monopolization of strategic areas of the economy by Russian companies, RFE/RL reports that the next asset to go will be the railways. However, as the news item says, the railway system has really suffered since independence and is usually a last resort not only for internal travel, but also for visiting neighboring countries.

Specifically this means Georgia as the railway obviously doesn’t run through Nakhichevan or to Azerbaijan proper as well as Turkey. Armenia is also not involved in a regional railway project involving Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan because of closed borders with the former and the unresolved conflict over Nagorno Karabakh with the latter.

The director general of Armenia’s rail network on Tuesday effectively confirmed its impending takeover by Russia’s state-run railway, a deal which will place yet another chunk of the Armenian economic infrastructure under Russian control.

The Armenian government called last year an international tender for the exclusive right to manage the struggling network for at least 30 years. Only the Russian railway and an Indian firm showed interest in the bidding, sending relevant proposals to Yerevan earlier this year.

The Indians pulled out of the tender last month, all but predetermining its outcome. Armenian media had for months claimed that the contest is a mere formality as the state-owned Armenian Railway’s handover to the Russians was decided by Presidents Vladimir Putin and Robert Kocharian in Moscow last January.

[…]

The impending deal is certain to be criticized by those government critics who believe that Russia’s growing economic presence in Armenia is turning into a stranglehold. Russian firms already dominate the Armenian energy and telecommunication sectors and are keen to acquire other industries. One of them is understood to have effectively purchased recently Armenia’s largest gold mining company from an Indian operator that fell foul of the authorities in Yerevan in January.

But according to Khrimian, more important is the fact that the new railway manager will have to invest at least $170 million in the Soviet-era network that has been operating at a fraction of its capacity ever since Armenia’s rail communication with the outside world was disrupted in 1992.

“Working in these blockade conditions, we have been unable to generate sufficient revenues to make capital investments in our train fleet and other infrastructure,” said Khrimian. “The investments will considerably improve the condition of our railway,” he added.

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It couldn’t have come at a worse time with all three republics in the South Caucasus gearing up for elections to be held next year. Georgia, considered a beacon of [relative] democracy in the region until today, has set an unfortunate precedent given that the opposition in all three countries will protest leading up to the respective votes as well as afterwards. Even the November 2003 Rose Revolution that brought the Georgian president, Mikhail Saakashvili, to power was peaceful in comparison to crackdowns by the authorities in neighboring Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Today, that all changed with the ironically entitled Steady State publishing a post simply entitled “Crazy in Georgia…” and a link to coverage from TOL Georgia. The two blogs were both established by Transitions Online and in particular, TOL Georgia is a welcome addition to blogging in the region. It’s coverage of the events as they unfold has been exemplary with recent updates now reporting attacks on the independent media in the country. Photographs recording scenes in downtown Tbilisi, some of which are posted here, are already up on Flickr courtesy of Davit Rostomashvili.

Following posts about Kavkasia TV and Imedia TV being taken off the air, TOL Georgia draws a frightening conclusion.

The Imedi TV journalists were threatened with force, kicked out from the TV station and had their mobiles phones seized.

[…]

A person was just beaten up by the additional internal affairs troops entering the TV station…

In how many democratic countries this happen???

Probably Imedi TV will be unveiled as Russian traitor TV… Shameful. This starts to look like clear-cut dictatorship…

The full post is available on Global Voices Online.