BAN URGES PATIENCE, STRESSING THAT DEALING WITH GEORGIA SITUATION WILL TAKE TIME

BAN URGES PATIENCE, STRESSING THAT DEALING WITH GEORGIA SITUATION WILL TAKE TIME
New York, Oct 15 2008 10:10AM
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appealed for patience as high-level talks take place today on the situation in Georgia, stressing that it will take time to address all the various aspects of the conflict that broke out in the Caucasus country in August and resolve outstanding issues.

Today's technical level meetings between representatives of Georgia, Russia, the European Union (EU), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) OSCE and the UN is a "beginning," Mr. Ban <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/offthecuff.asp?nid=1212">told reporters last night following a working dinner with EU and OSCE officials.

"They should not be seen as the end. It may take time, so we need to have some patience on addressing this issue," he said. "In a short time we need to try our best efforts among the parties concerned to restore confidence so that we can establish a good conflict resolution process in the end."

Mr. Ban, who is represented at today's talks by his Special Representative for Georgia, Johan Verbeke, said he was encouraged by the general consensus among the parties to resolve the issue through dialogue, and that the accord initiated by President Nicolas Sarkozy of France and President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia provided a "good framework" on which to begin discussions.

The Secretary-General also noted that the UN has been engaged in Georgia since 1993 through UNOMIG, the observer mission entrusted with overseeing the ceasefire accord between the Government and Abkhaz separatists in the country's north-west.

"The United Nations has gained over 15 years of accumulated experience and know-how in terms of military observation, human rights, policing, humanitarian assistance, displaced persons and good offices. We have been in contact with the authorities of Abkhazia and they also further indicated that the United Nations should also continue to operate in that area. This is a good sign," he said.

In a recent report, Mr. Ban noted that the changes brought about by the Russian-Georgian conflict in South Ossetia in August have cast some uncertainty over the future function of UNOMIG.

"We should not be too impatient or in a hurry to have a so-called 'quick fix' resolution of this issue. This may take time," he said last night. "In the later stage, we need to look at all these issues in a comprehensive manner after dealing with more practical issues."

The Security Council last week extended UNOMIG's mandate on a technical basis until 15 February 2009, as recommended by Mr. Ban.
Oct 15 2008 10:10AM
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