Russia in Georgia separatist pact
Russia has signed friendship treaties with Abkhazia and South Ossetia,
sealing diplomatic ties with the breakaway Georgian regions.
Russia needs to mark its
Arctic territory: Medvedev
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia
should pass a law marking its territory in the disputed Arctic
where it claims a large share of the mineral resources, Russian
President Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday. Geologists believe
valuable energy and mineral deposits lie below the Arctic seabed
and it is only a matter of time before global warming melts the
icecap making them accessible to miners.
"We must finalize and adopt a
federal law on the southern border of Russia's Arctic zone,"
Medvedev told Russia's security council according to Interfax
news agency.
"It is our duty to our direct
descendents, we have to ensure the long-term national interests
of Russia in the Arctic."
Last year a Russian
mini-submarine dived to the seabed underneath the North Pole
icecap and symbolically planted a Russian flag to claim the
Arctic for the Kremlin.
International law states that
the five countries which control Arctic coastline -- Canada,
Russia, the United States, Norway and Denmark -- are allowed a
320 km (200 mile) economic zone north of their shores.
But countries have until May
2009 to submit new ownership claims over the Arctic to a United
Nations commission.
Russia has claimed jurisdiction
over much of the Arctic because an underwater ridge links
Siberia to the seabed that runs underneath the North Pole.
-Russia
Times |
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Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (R) and Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin attend a Security Council meeting in the Kremlin
in Moscow on September 17. -AFP |
The accords include a pledge of military assistance from Russia.
Georgia's President Mikhail Saakashvili told the BBC he was "deeply
troubled" by the treaties, calling Russia's move "classic invasion and
annexation".
Russian troops ousted Georgian forces from both regions during
intense fighting which erupted on 7 August.
The treaties were signed in the Kremlin by Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev and the regions' separatist leaders, in a televised ceremony on
Wednesday.
They grant Russia the right to build and improve military bases in
Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the Itar-Tass news agency reports.
In addition, "the contracting parties shall conclude separate
agreements on military co-operation", the treaties said.
'Very dangerous'
Mr Saakashvili told the BBC's HARDtalk programme that Russia was "as
nasty as one can get internationally".
He said the world should feel "humiliated" by the situation and
should work together to ensure Russia could not "go on with this type of
adventure".
"Because it would be a never-ending story and might become very, very
dangerous," he said.
Mr Saakashvili said that Russia had promised to withdraw its troops
to pre-conflict positions as part of the deal, but that Moscow had "a
very weird reading" of that commitment.
"They interpret pre-conflict positions as having a much wider zone
than they've ever controlled in the past," he said.
Russia plans to keep 3,800 troops in Abkhazia and the same number in
South Ossetia. Russia recognised the independence of the two breakaway
regions on 26 August. So far, Nicaragua is the only other country to
have done so.
'All necessary support'
In response to the treaty signings, the US reiterated calls for
Russia to respect Georgia's territorial integrity and withdraw its
forces to positions occupied before the conflict, in line with an EU-brokered
ceasefire deal.
"Our position in support of Georgia's territorial integrity is
unchanged," said White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe. He said the US
expected Russia "to live up to the commitments" in the truce agreement.
Mr Medvedev said the new treaties would mean that Russia and the
breakaway regions would take "joint necessary measures to eliminate the
threat to peace, address problems in this sphere and resist acts of
aggression". "We will show each other all necessary support, including
military support," he said, flanked by South Ossetian leader Eduard
Kokoity and Abkhaz leader Sergei Bagapsh.
Earlier on Wednesday, Russia condemned a two-day visit to Georgia
this week by Nato representatives from all 26 member nations.
During the visit, Nato Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said
the door was still open for Georgia to join Nato.
The Russian foreign ministry said a "them and us" mentality was at
work, and criticised the Nato ambassadors for checking on damage in
Georgia but not in South Ossetia.
It said the Nato chief would have got a more objective picture of the
August conflict by visiting Tskhinvali, the heavily war-damaged capital
of South Ossetia.
Nato's support for Georgia "can only be seen as encouraging Tbilisi
to engage in new reckless adventures," the ministry statement added.
However, President Saakashvili has called for a Nato presence in
Georgia, "to make long-term security here and security for Nato". The
conflict in the region began on 7 August when Georgia tried to retake
South Ossetia by force after a series of lower-level clashes. Russia
launched a counter-attack and the Georgian troops were ejected from both
South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The signing of the treaties comes a day
after the Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, announced that
Russia's defence spending for 2009 would increase by 27%, to the
equivalent of almost $95bn (£53bn).
-BBC |
