The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) held a special meeting here on Friday, discussing the Georgian-Ossetian conflict.
According to the Austrian News Agency APA, Head of the Russian mission to the OSCE Vladimir Woronkow emphasized after the meeting that Moscow had not sent additional troops or tanks into the conflicting region and "this is no conflict between Russia and Georgia."
He said Russia sent only 500 soldiers to the south Ossetian region, stationing as part of the international peacekeeping troops there. Georgia was very "sneaky" by saying that Russia was one side of the conflict, while the two sides of the conflict were actually Georgia and Ossetia.
However, the Georgian representative to OSCE Victor Dolidze blamed Russia for intervening militarily on the part of the South Ossetian separatists. He therefore called for the international community to put pressure on Russia to end its intervention.
Source said that Georgian armed forces traded gunfire with militants of the breakaway region of South Ossetia near the regional capital Tskhinvali overnight to Friday.
The OSCE Chairman, Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb called on Friday for an end to all military action in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict.
South Ossetia is an autonomous region in Georgia, bordering the North Ossetia in Russia. Its main residents are Ossetians, Russians and Georgians.
Since 1989, the South Ossetia has been requesting the merger with North Ossetia. After the Soviet Union was disintegrated, the South Ossetia began seeking for independence.
On June 24, 1992, top leaders of Russia, Georgia, South Ossetia and North Ossetia held meeting for peaceful settlement of the armed conflict in South Ossetia and reached an agreement of cease-fire, establishing peacekeeping forces.
According to the agreement, Russia, Georgia, South Ossetia and North Ossetia set up a Supervision Committee. Russia, Georgia and South Ossetia established also peacekeeping forces, which were responsible of implementing peacekeeping mission in the conflict region.
However, the authorities of South Ossetia had never changed their minds. South Ossetia held a referendum in November 2006 again for independence, which had not been recognized by the international community.
In recent years, the conflicts between South Ossetia and the Georgia government happened now and then.
source:Xinhua
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