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European Parliament says ready to defend South Caucasian energy corridors

03 September 2008 16:10 (UTC +04:00)

Brusselsâ€“APA. The European Parliament passed on Wednesday a resolution on Georgia, APA reports. Members of the Parliament called on Russia to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia and to honor all its commitments under the ceasefire agreement, beginning with the complete and immediate withdrawal of its troops. They strongly condemned Russia for recognition of the independence of the breakaway Georgian regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. MEPs called on the Council and Commission to review their policy towards Russia. They asked the Council to consider the deployment of an ESDP (European Security and Defence Policy) monitoring mission to complement the UN and OSCE missions. MEPs welcomed in particular the decision to appoint an EU Special Representative for the crisis in Georgia. They also called on the Commission to propose visa facilitation and readmission agreements with Georgia at least equivalent to those for Russia.

MEPs demand that an independent international investigation be carried in order to establish the facts and bring greater clarity to certain allegations. The House urges Georgia, which ratified the Rome Statute of the ICC, and the Russian authorities to lend support to and fully cooperate with the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.