The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) wants an urgent reinforcement of its military monitors in Georgia to observe the cease-fire with Russia, Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb said Tuesday.
He said the OSCE is in the process of making a decision to send20 additional military monitors to Georgia on Tuesday.
All OSCE member states but Georgia have agreed to this decision, he said. The organization is now waiting for the green light from Tbilisi.
"We must get that decision, we must get it today, we must get those military monitors into the region," Stubb told reporters at the NATO headquarters.
Stubb, who is OSCE chairman, briefed NATO foreign ministers, who are convening an emergency meeting over the Georgia-Russia conflict.
Stubb said the deployment of more military and police monitors is the short-term solution to calm things down in the region.
At present, the OSCE has nine military monitors in South Ossetia, who are not being able to provide enough information on the situation, said Stubb.
The number of OSCE military monitors can increase to 100 in the coming days after the initial deployment of 20, said Stubb.
The 20 additional monitors will be stationed in an area adjacent to South Ossetia, he said.
The expanded OSCE mission may cover the whole of Georgia, depending on a decision in Vienna, where the OSCE secretariat is based, he said.
The deployment of OSCE monitors is the first step toward a resolution of the conflict, he said.
The second step will be a resolution by the UN Security Council, which may not be possible in the near future. Then an international peacekeeping mission can be discussed, he said.
Georgia launched attacks in South Ossetia on Aug. 7 in an attempt to regain control of the breakaway region. Tbilisi's move triggered prompt reaction from Russia, whose troops drove Georgian forces out of the region.
The West is accusing Russia of not honoring its commitment to a peace agreement which foresees withdrawal of Russian troops from Georgia.
Source: Xinhua
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