| Other Photos |
 |
|
 |
FSB to Guard Abkhazia, Ossetia Borders
The FSB border service may soon take over the guard duty on the borders of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, after the Russian State Duma ratifies agreements of cooperation and mutual aid with the two territories. Those agreements were recently introduced into the Duma by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, with a request for fast consideration due to their “political importance.” The agreements are identical and provide for broad military cooperation.
“For purposes of guaranteeing the security of the signatory parties and peace and stability in the Transcaucasia region, each party will provide the other the right to the construction, use and improvement by its armed forces of military infrastructure and military bases on its territory,” the agreements read.
The plan is for the FSB to work with local forces around their entire perimeters, including the parts that border on Georgia. Under article 7 of the agreements, guarding the borders of the republics “will be implemented through joint efforts of the signatory parties based on interests of joint security and peace and stability in the Transcaucasia region.”
“It boils down to the borders being guarded by Russians,” confirmed head of the South Ossetian government committee on information and the press Irina Gagloeva. “It is necessary and it was necessary before the Georgian aggression. The ineffectiveness of the international monitors is clear and it is obvious that our borders need strengthening.”
www.kommersant.com
|
|
|
Photo: Vasily Shaposhnikov
