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Sochi agreement

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The Sochi agreement (also known as the Dagomys Agreements (Russian: Дагомысские соглашения), official name in Russian: «Cоглашение о принципах мирного урегулирования грузино-осетинского конфликта») was a ceasefire agreement ostensibly marking the end of both the Georgian–Ossetian and Georgian–Abkhazian conflicts, signed in Sochi on June 24, 1992 between Georgia and Russia, the ceasefire with Abkhazia on July 27, 1993.

South Ossetia agreement

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Further information: Georgian–Ossetian conflict

Russia brokered a ceasefire and negotiated the Agreement in 1992. The agreement primarily established a cease-fire between both the Georgian and South Ossetian forces, but it also defined a zone of conflict around the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali and established a security corridor along the border of the as yet unrecognized South Ossetian territories. The Agreement also created a Joint Control Commission and a peacekeeping body, the Joint Peacekeeping Forces group (JPKF). The JPKF was put under Russian command and was composed of peacekeepers from Georgia, Russia, and North Ossetia (as the separatist South Ossetian government was still unrecognized; South Ossetian peacekeepers, however, served in the North Ossetian contingent). In addition, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) did agree to monitor the ceasefire and to facilitate negotiations.[1][2] The OSCE sought to eliminate sources of tension, support the existing ceasefire, and facilitate a broader political framework to alleviate long term disharmony.[3][4]

Abkhazia agreement

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Further information: War in Abkhazia (1992–1993)

Once again, a Russian brokered agreement in 1993, the Agreement on a ceasefire in Abkhazia and On a Mechanism To Ensure Its Observance, allowed for a moratorium on the use of force, the withdrawal of conflicting parties from the warzone within fifteen days, establishing a Russian-Georgian-Abkhaz control group to monitor the ceasefire, the return of the Abkhazian parliament to Sukhumi, the placement of UN observers in the territory, and the resumption of talks to settle the dispute. In August of the same year UNOMIG was put in place as the UN monitoring force. The truce was violated on September 27 as Abkhaz forces seized Sukhumi and declared victory. The pro-Georgian forces then withdrew to Tbilisi, as Georgia joined the CIS and changed Russia's stance towards Georgia's on the matter.

A further Agreement on a Cease-fire and Separation of Forces, also known as the 1994 Moscow Agreement, was agreed the following year.

Once again, on March 6–7, 2003, Georgian President Eduard Sheverdnadze and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed another agreement that sought to include economic rehabilitation, resumption of rail networks, and the attraction of international investment. This would happen to turn into a disappointment, especially for the Georgians.[5][6]

Other Sochi summits

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Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk held Russian-Ukrainian summit in Dagomys on 23 June, where they partially resolved their dispute over Black Sea Fleet, agreeing on a joint use of the bases in Crimea and on division of Black Sea Fleet, while postponing talks on how to apportion the 45 cruisers, 28 submarines, 300 small and medium-sized ships, 150 aircraft, and 85 helicopters in the fleet. Georgia has also claimed parts of the fleet. Russia and Ukraine also agreed on introduction of hryvnia as Ukraine's new currency and to shift to world prices in their bilateral trade. They pledged to "work in concert to resolve violent conflicts in the region" and Yeltsin suggested a joint Russian-Ukrainian conference on Transnistria conflict. The sides failed to reach agreement on the control of nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Russia and Ukraine signed a general agreement on friendly ties and agreed to start negotiations on a new political treaty to confirm this relationship.[7][8]

Then President of Russia Vladimir Putin meeting with then President of Georgia Eduard Shevardnadze and then Prime Minister of Abkhazia Gennady Gagulia in Sochi on 7 March 2003.

In 2003, Russian President Vladimir Putin met Georgian President Shevardnadze and Abkhazian PM Gennady Gagulia and set in motion a Sochi process that sought to create a Georgian-Russian-Abkhaz working groups on confidence building measures's (CBM). The parties sought to make it easier for the return of refugees and economic reconstruction. The Sochi process signified a regress from the multilateral to a bilateral format that left Georgia on its own to face Russia and the Abkhaz. It also was seen to undermine Georgia's argument that the Geneva process was the sole format for a comprehensive settlement of the conflict.[9] In 2004, Russia were seen to violate the agreement as a Russian company begun maintenance work on the Sochi-Sukhumi railroad, which was legally Georgian, though controlled by Russia and the Abkhaz. The move was seen as a violation whereby restoration could only proceed in parallel with the safe return of Georgian refugees to Abkhazia beginning with the Gali district. However, there had been no progress on the return of refugees, and so, unilateral Russian actions on the railroad violated the Sochi agreement.[10][9] However, there had been no progress on the return of refugees.[citation needed]

In 2008, U.S. President George W. Bush and Putin made a last-ditch attempt as incumbent presidents to resolve a protracted dispute over European missile defenses at another Sochi summit. This followed Russian officials objecting to U.S. plans to deploy ballistic missile defenses (BMD) in Poland and the Czech Republic. They had claimed that the stated American justification for the BMD deployments—that the systems are needed to defend the United States and European countries against an emerging Iranian missile threat—lacked credibility. Instead, they insisted the true objective of such moves along Russia's periphery was to weaken Russia's nuclear deterrent.[11]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "South Ossetia". Freedom House: Freedom in the World. Freedom House. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
  2. ^ Sammut, Dennis; Cvetkovski, Nikola (March 2006). Confidence Building Matters: The Georgia-South Ossetia Conflict (PDF). London, UK: Verification Technology Information Centre. p. 14. ISBN 1-899548-06-8.
  3. ^ Personal Representative of the CSCE Chairman-in-Office for Georgia (November 1992), "17-CSO/Journal No. 2, Annex 2", Seventeenth CSO Meeting, Annex 2, The Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, retrieved 2013-11-05
  4. ^ Arie Bloed (1993). The Conference on Security and Co-Operation in Europe: Analysis and Basic Documents, 1972–1993. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. pp. 976–978. ISBN 978-0-7923-2593-2. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
  5. ^ "Abkhazia: Statement by the National Security Council of Georgia (S/2003/569)", reliefweb: Updates (Report from the UN Security Council), ReliefWeb, 2003-05-23, retrieved 2013-11-05
  6. ^ "S/Res/1494 (2003)", United Nations Security Council, United Nations, 2003-07-30, retrieved 2013-11-05
  7. ^ Viktor Grebenshikov; Carey Goldberg (24 June 1992). "Russia and Ukraine Hail Friendship : Commonwealth: Yeltsin, Kravchuk partly resolve dispute over Black Sea Fleet. They will join in talks Thursday on warfare in Moldova". Los Angeles Times.
  8. ^ Christia Freeland (23 June 1992). "Russia, Ukraine to divide fleet: Yeltsin, Krachuk reach accord in principle at Black Sea talks". Washington Post.
  9. ^ a b Socor, Vladimir. "Eurasia Daily Monitor | The Jamestown Foundation". Jamestown.org. Archived from the original on October 19, 2006. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
  10. ^ Socor, Vladimir. "Eurasia Daily Monitor | The Jamestown Foundation". Jamestown.org. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
  11. ^ "WPR Article | Sochi Summit Fails to Solve U.S.-Russian Missile Defense Dispute". Worldpoliticsreview.com. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
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