BRUSSELS, August 27 (Itar-Tass) — NATO does not recognise the results of the August 26 presidential elections in Abkhazia, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on Saturday.
“The holding of such elections does not contribute to a peaceful and lasting settlement of the situation in Georgia,” Rasmussen said.
“The Alliance reiterates its full support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognised borders,” he stressed.
Earlier, Russian permanent representative to NATO Dmitry Rogozin said Russian military presence in South Ossetia and Abkhazia is the only guarantee of regional stability.
The U.S. Senate resolution on the ‘occupation’ of Abkhazia and South Ossetia is “a usual spit on Russia, which will have no practical results,” he noted said.
The Senate once again condemned Russia and demanded its respect for Georgian independence and territorial integrity.
“Russia cannot occupy a country, which it has recognized and which has offered Russia to deploy its forces on the national territory. If Russia had deployed forces on the territory of a foreign state against the latter’s will, it would have been an act of occupation. This is a totally different case: Russia recognized independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and the authorities of both republics invited Russia to have its military presence on their territories. This is a temporary measure caused by the aggression of the neighbour state, Georgia. This is a forced measure because other states, for instance, the United States, or international organizations like the EU and NATO have denied guarantees of security and non-aggression from Georgia to Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Under these circumstances, Russian military presence is the only factor ensuring regional stability,” he said.
The resolution is totally senseless, because the topic “has long been removed from the agenda of the Russia-NATO Council,” Rogozin said.
“If U.S. Senators lack legal training, we are ready to provide them with a training course at a law institute of Russia,” he said.
“One may look differently in politics – incite fear or admiration, but one may not look funny. The Senate reputation is the point of U.S. honor, and it has no moral right to make decisions that entail nothing but emotions,” he said. “This resolution is another spit on Russia, which does not imply practical results. This is a simple demarche, an outburst, which causes nothing but Russia’s incomprehension and doubts about the adequacy of the U.S. legislative branch.”
The resolution is based “exclusively on domestic political ambitions of certain Senators, who wish to gain more support from the voters,” he said. “I am absolutely positive that the U.S. Senators do not care about Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Georgia, and, to some extent, about Russia. This decision has the sole reason of winning over American voters. The decision, which has no material or legal force, aims to discredit the policy of the reset of relations with Russia started by President Obama,” he said.
“I think that the U.S. Senate resolution is a misunderstanding and a document induced by politicians who have narrow personal mercenary goals,” he said.