OSCE Chairman calls for non-violent resolution of Ajara situation
(OSCE/Mission to Georgia)OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Solomon Passy (left), meets Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili in Tbilisi, 25 January 2004. (OSCE/Mission to Georgia) Photo details
TBILISI, 15 March 2004 - The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Solomon Passy, expressed concern over the current situation around Ajara at the start of a visit to Georgia and called upon both sides to exercise restraint and use all available means to resolve their differences peacefully.
"I trust the escalation of tension in Georgia will be removed as soon as possible to ensure that the 28 March parliamentary elections in the country are held in the same positive spirit as the presidential elections of 4 January," Minister Passy said.
The OSCE Chairman-in-Office is due to meet President Mikheil Saakashvili in the western Georgian port of Poti during the course of the day. At the meeting, Passy will again call for dialogue aimed at resolving the situation around Ajara in a non-violent way.
"I trust the escalation of tension in Georgia will be removed as soon as possible to ensure that the 28 March parliamentary elections in the country are held in the same positive spirit as the presidential elections of 4 January," Minister Passy said.
The OSCE Chairman-in-Office is due to meet President Mikheil Saakashvili in the western Georgian port of Poti during the course of the day. At the meeting, Passy will again call for dialogue aimed at resolving the situation around Ajara in a non-violent way.