Publication N22 / Review Period: May 1-31, 2023 / Author: Elene Mindiashvili

Monitoring of the Situation at the Occupation Line is being prepared within the framework of the project- Roadmap to Kremlin's Policy in Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali Region. The purpose of the publication is to review the situation and ongoing important developments near the occupation line in the Tskhinvali region. The publication will be useful for everyone – decision-makers, public employees, representatives of media and international governmental or non-governmental organizations,  and other people who are interested in the mentioned topic.

Meeting to Discuss Issues Related to Missing People

On May 23, the 18th meeting of the Coordination Mechanism seeking to clarify the fate and whereabouts of people missing in relation to the armed conflicts of the 1990s and August 2008 and their aftermath was held in Ergneti, (Gori municipality).

The meeting presented an update on the progress made since the last meeting of the Coordination Mechanism in September 2022. The International Committee of the Red Cross has not specified any progress in identifying the possible burial sites of the missing people. However, the press release indicated that all participants of the meeting agreed to cooperate and coordinate work regarding this process and related challenges.

The Coordination Mechanism, bringing together Georgian, South Ossetian and Russian participants, was established under the auspices and with the technical expertise of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in 2010 as a purely humanitarian platform. The platform participnats exchange theinformation about missing people in relation to the armed conflicts of the 1990s and August 2008. 

Meeting of the Coordination Mechanism. Source: icrc.org

Citizens Detained and Released 

The month of May was outstanding by the abundance of illegal detentions - four Georgian citizens were arrested and released.

Illegal detentions mainly occured in the following villages of Gori and Kareli municipalities: Ergneti, Mejvriskhevi, Nikozi and Dvani. Such activation of the military of the occupation forces is probably related to the shepherding season. According to the locals, the intensity of patrolling along the occupation line by the occupation forces has increased recently. Their fear is further aggravated by the fact that along with the usual process of patrolling, the military are endangering the population in the vicinity of the occupation line, including on the territory controlled by the central government of Georgia.

Release of Chito Akhalkatsi and Gocha Mamagulashvili

On April 30, the Russian occupation forces arrested two Georgian citizens. Chito Akhalkatsi and GochaMamagulashvili were handed over to the central government of Georgia at the Ergneti checkpoint on May 3. The Georgian citizens were detained while they were illegally herding cattle on the occupied territory near the village of Dvani, Kareli municipality. According to the locals, the cattle moved beyond the occupation line and the shepherds tried to gather them back, at which time the military who were hiding nearby arrested both Georgian citizens and took them to Tskhinvali prison.

Arrest and Release of Giorgi Terashvili

On May 11, in the village of Mejvriskhevi (Goti municipality) near the occupation line, the occupation forces illegally detained Gorgi Terashvili, a resident of the same village, on charges of crossing the so-called border. Terashvili was in illegal detention for two days. On May 13, he was handed over to the central government of Georgia.

Arrest and Release of Giorgi Megrelishvili

On May 14, the occupation forces illegally arrested Giorgi Megrelishvili, a Georgian citizen living in Nikozi (Gori municipality), near the occupation line of the villages of Kvemo Khiti and Nikozi (Gori municipality). Megrelishvili was released from illegal detention the next day.

Arrest of Levan Petriashvili and Archil Basanidze

On May 15, at the occupation section of the village of Ergneti, a Georgian citizen and a resident of the same village, Levan Petriashvili, and the next day - his friend, Archil Basanidze, were arrested. The occupation regime accuses both of them of illegal crossing of the so-called border. According to the statement of the Georgian State Security Service (SSS), the hotline mechanism of the European Union Monitoring Mission was activated, although both, Petriashvili and Basanidze, remain in illegal detention. Petriashvili managed to contact his family from Tskhinvali prison. According to Radio Liberty, there are no signs of violence against Georgian citizens. As a preventive measure, the de facto regime sentencedthem to a month pre-trial detention.

“Borderization” and Ongoing Activities Along the Occupation Line

In May, there was no case of moving the occupation line deep onto the territory controlled by the central government of Georgia, although activity was still observed in the vicinity of the occupation line. While patroling, Davit Katsarava, the leader of the anti-occupation movement – Power is in Unity, capturedfootage of the return of the military to one of the bases. The footage shows that two shovels are taken from an engineering vehicle. According to Katsarava, this is an indication that a new process of “borderization” has begun in the vicinity of the occupation line, although the assumption is not officially confirmed.

The same movement reports that at the beginning of May, an armored personnel carrier was seen filming at a base located in the village of Tsnelisi (Tigvi municipality), near the Tsagvli-Chorchana forest. As reported by Katsarava, in addition to the Tsnelisi base, the activity of the military of the occupation forces was observed at another military base. He also published a video confirming aforementioned fact. Katsarava did not specify exactly which section was captured by the aerial camera, although the footage clearly shows how the military are organizing helicopter landing field.

Armored Personnel Carrier in the Occupied Tsnelisi. Source: Davit Katsarava's Facebook page.

Important Visits

Visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark to Khurvaleti

On May 15, a delegation of the Parliament and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, visited the section of the occupation line in the village of Khurvaleti (Gori municipality). The delegation was accompanied by the Danish Ambassador to Georgia, Anne Toft Sørensen. Observers of the European Union Monitoring Mission introduced the current situation on the ground, briefed about the latest developments in terms of security along the occupation line and spoke about the severity of the negative effects of the current “borderization”process for citizens living on both sides of the occupation line.

Visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. Source: eumm.eu

Czech Parliamentary Delegation Visits Odzisi

On May 24, a Czech parliamentary delegation visited an occupation line section in Khurvaleti (Gori municipality). The European Union Monitoring Mission published the information on its Instagram page. During the visit, the observers briefed the delegation about the situation on the ground. A special emphasis was placed on the acute situation in terms of security and freedom of movement.