On 24 January 2018, the 84th meeting under the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) was held in Ergneti. The meeting was conducted in an open and positive atmosphere.
Erik Høeg, Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), and ambassador Günther Bächler, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus, co-facilitated the proceedings.
Erik Høeg opened the meeting and provided a short general summary of events since the last meeting on the 19 December 2017. The security situation along the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) was assessed as relatively calm. The co-facilitators expressed their appreciation with the continued and active use of the Hotline to address any security related matters on the ground.
The issue of transparency in the investigation case of Mr. Basharuli, was once again debated.
Participants expressed concern over any use of firearms in the vicinity of the ABL, and underlined the importance of activating the Hotline in instances where civilians are observed carrying firearms close to the ABL.
The impact of ‘borderisation’, and particularly the issue of farming and collection of firewood close to the ABL, was deliberated. The co- facilitators encouraged all participants to continue the discussion underlining the humanitarian dimension of the issue.
The co-facilitators expressed their gratitude for the overall constructive approach to the EUMM proposal to enlarge the list of activities conducted by military/security actors near the ABL and which could be pre-announced via the Hotline. Coupled with this, Mr. Høeg underlined, once again, the importance of sharing information on military exercises in a timely fashion
The next IPRM meeting will take place on 01 March 2018.
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The meeting participants, as usual, gather in front of the tent in Ergneti
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Leading participant from Georgia, Kakhaber Kemoklidze highlights the main topics of the agenda prior to official opening of the IPRM meeting
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Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia Erik Høeg, talking to the leading participant, Murat Jioev, from the South Ossetian side
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Co-facilitators of the meeting Erik Høeg, Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), and ambassador Günther Bächler, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus, announce the opening of the 84th IPRM meeting in Ergneti
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Head of Mission, Erik Høeg opened the meeting and provided a short general summary of events since the last meeting on the 19 December 2017
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Co-facilitators of the IPRM meeting continue discussions on some of the agenda items during a short break
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Discussions in progress…
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Media presence outside of the IPRM tent
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Leading participant from the South Ossetian side, Murat Jioev, sums up the meeting in his interview to media
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EUMM Spokesperson, Des Doyle, producing the final draft of the 84th IPRM Press Release
