Avignon, 05/09/2008 (Agence Europe) - Upon arriving in Avignon on Friday 5 September, EU foreign ministers remained cautious about making any declarations about the conflict in Georgia, careful not to interfere with the assessment that may be made regarding application of the six-point agreement after the visit to Moscow by Nicolas Sarkozy, José Manuel Barroso and Javier Solana, on Monday 8 September.
Meeting in the south of France for an informal meeting, the first day of which, Friday, was devoted to the future of transatlantic relations, all recalled the need for the EU to help Georgia while not severing links with Russia and at the same time showing firmness. “Europe is right to do an audit of its relations with Russia”, said David Milibrand of Britain who, like his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, called for an independent inquiry into the responsibilities and abuses committed in this conflict. The German foreign minster said that such an investigation into the events that took place in August could be entrusted to the United Nations or the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Alexander Stubb, Finnish Foreign Minister and President-in-Office of the OSCE, did not dismiss this idea but said one should be “very careful when pointing a finger of blame”. He above all called for the designation of a high representative who would have international recognition and would be able to work with the UN, the EU, OSCE and the parties to the conflict.
Preparation of an EU civil ESDP mission to be despatched to Georgia will be one of the issues discussed by ministers on Saturday. The Belgian and Italian ministers, Karel de Gucht and Franco Frattini, will brief their counterparts on the results of their visit this week to Moscow and Tbilissi. According to the Belgian press, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov clearly indicated to Mr de Gucht that the deployment of EU observers on the territory of South Ossetia and Abkhazia could not come about without prior assent from the leaders of both regions, whose declarations of independence have been recognised by Moscow. The observers could at most take position in the buffer zones created around the two breakaway provinces. The Russian stance, already defended by the Russian ambassador to the EU in Brussels (EUROPE 9729), seriously complicates the proposal for an EU mission since the EU naturally cannot call for authorisation from these two self-proclaimed republics that it refuses to recognise.
Preparation of the summit with Ukraine on 9 September in Evian (EUROPE 9733) will also be discussed on Saturday. On Friday, the Luxembourg minister, Jean Asselborn, confirmed his reluctance to grant European prospects for Ukraine, saying it would “not be constructive” to speak of accession at this stage. (A.B./H.B./transl.jl)