US sits out joint UN Security Council statement condemning Russia over 2008 August War
The US was absent from a joint statement by several UN Security Council members condemning Russia in the August 2008 War. This was reportedly the first time the US has not joined statements condemning Russia for the war.
The statement was made by representatives of France, the UK, Denmark, Greece, Slovenia, and Latvia on Monday.
They condemned Russia’s actions in the war and its military presence in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and reaffirmed their support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The US absence from the joint statement, reportedly its first since the conflict erupted, was noted by Abkhazia and Georgia’s opposition parties.
Georgia’s Foreign Ministry issued a press release regarding the statement on Monday, but did not remark on the US absence. However, several Georgian opposition figures have attributed the US absence from the statement to the ruling Georgian Dream’s anti-Western policies and trajectory.
The chair of the opposition United National Movement (UNM) party, Tina Bokuchava, took to Facebook on Wednesday to criticise Georgian Dream, saying Georgia’s Foreign Ministry ‘as an agency, officially no longer exists’, and that the no-show of the US in the statement was ‘proof that Georgian diplomacy is dead’.
On Thursday, Abkhazia’s acting Deputy Foreign Minister Irakli Tuzhba welcomed the US’ ‘refusal’ to join the statement, saying it suggests that President Donald Trump’s administration ‘may reconsider its attitude towards unconditional support for Georgia’.
‘In fact, for the first time, Washington has refused a document supporting the territorial integrity of Georgia and condemning Russia’s military presence in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. This is a fairly indicative step, demonstrating significant changes in the approaches of the new US authorities, focused on a more pragmatic policy, implying the normalisation of relations with Russia’.
‘Let us hope that the current precedent will also reflect the changing views of the US political leadership regarding Georgia’s unfounded territorial claims’, he concluded.
For ease of reading, we choose not to use qualifiers such as ‘de facto’, ‘unrecognised’, or ‘partially recognised’ when discussing institutions or political positions within Abkhazia, Nagorno-Karabakh, and South Ossetia. This does not imply a position on their status.
