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South Ossetia, Georgia fail to reach compromise on border situation

The sides also failed to reach a compromise at the previous session held on September 9

TSKHINVALI, September 13. /TASS/. Representatives of South Ossetia and Georgia have failed to come to an agreement on the border situation, head of the South Ossetian delegation to the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) Yegor Kochiyev said.

The talks were held within the framework of the IPRM on the border between South Ossetia and Georgia in the area of the Georgian settlement of Ergneti.

"The technical meeting did not bring any concrete results. The Georgian side refuses to discuss the situation, saying that the roadblock does not threaten anyone. This is unacceptable to the South Ossetian side," Kochiyev said on the outcomes of the talks.

The sides also failed to reach a compromise at the previous session held on September 9.

"There are armed citizens of a neighbor state [Georgia] on the territory of South Ossetia, and the South Ossetian law enforcement bodies will take all measures to ensure the safety of the republic and its residents," Kochiyev said.

He noted that the South Ossetian side had offered a solution to the problem. "This Georgian roadblock must be removed, armed persons must be escorted out, and when this happens, South Ossetia will take the corresponding measures on defusing tensions," Kochiyev stated, noting that the dialogue will continue, although its date has not been set yet.

Situation on the South Ossetian border

Earlier, South Ossetia informed of the construction of an illegal Georgian roadblock near the village of Uista. On August 29, at the IPRM meeting, mediated by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the European Union, the South Ossetian delegation demanded the removal of the Georgian roadblock and then walked out of the meeting after Georgia had turned down a compromise.

After that, South Ossetia put up its own roadblocks near the village and beefed up presence in the border area. On August 30, a technical meeting of the IPRM was convened to discuss the removal of the Georgian roadblock. South Ossetia’s only demand was to dismantle the checkpoint.

On September 5, it was reported that South Ossetia had occupied a height at the border with Georgia and had lifted the republic’s flag at the western section of the border.

Tskhinval underscored the humanitarian nature of its actions. South Ossetian representatives emphasized that "the border checkpoint put up at a strategically important height hinders Georgia’s efforts to take control of some areas in South Ossetia near the village of Uista" and "is meant to ensure security of the republic’s citizens there."