MOSCOW, August 5. /TASS/. Russia seeks to ensure security in Abkhazia and South Ossetia and will continue to do so, Chairman of the Russian State Duma (the lower house of parliament) Committee for CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots Leonid Kalashnikov told TASS on Thursday.
"We work to ensure their security like we do in many other countries that used to be part of the same country, and we will continue to do that," the lawmaker said, commenting on some members of the UN Security Council calling on Russia to withdraw its troops from Abkhazia and South Ossetia and reverse its recognition of their independence.
State Duma Deputy Speaker Irina Yarovaya, in turn, stated that "it is unacceptable to demand that Russia break the most important principles of international law, related to freedom, equality and justice." "Based on the principle of equality and the self-determination of peoples, enshrined in the United Nations Charter, all peoples have the right to freely determine their political status without foreign interference, as well as to pursue their economic, social and cultural development, and all countries need to respect this right of theirs," she emphasized.
On Wednesday, several members of the UN Security Council (Estonia, France, Ireland, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States) issued a joint statement on the 2008 events in South Ossetia. The document says that "Russia’s actions are in clear violation of international law," adding that "Russia has been responsible for grave human rights violations." The authors of the statement called on Russia to "withdraw its military and security forces without delay and reverse its recognition of the so-called independence" of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Dmitry Polyansky said earlier that attempts by the Western members of the UN Security Council to bring up the Abkhazia and South Ossetia issues made it clear that they were reluctant to accept the reality.