Who is going to be the next?

Who is going to be the first to recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia: Byelorussia or Peru? The delegation from Minsk has studied the situation in Tbilisi, Sukhum and Tskhinval to submit its conclusions to the parliament. At the same time, it became known that the opposition of Peru put forward a proposal to recognize the independence of the two Caucasian republics following the example of Nicaragua and Venezuela.

Less than half a year ago the Georgian law-enforcement authorities kept Byelorussian tourists in prison for visiting Abkhazia and Georgia without Tbilisi's permission. The authorities imposed fines upon them and kept them in jail until the payment was made.

Now the Byelorussian tourists again got to Sukhum and then to Tskhinval illegally, that is, through Moscow. This time, however, Tbilisi graciously agreed to a voyage, for those were not common tourists but parliamentarians who are to make an important decision on the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The more so, as their colleagues simultaneously arrived in the Georgian capital directly from Minsk: the Byelorussian delegation was divided in three groups.

The Byelorussian delegates' mission in Georgia did not seem to frighten anyone. According to Vice Speaker of Georgia Paata Davitaya, it is yet too early to speak about the possible recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia's independence by Byelorussia.

The visit to Tbilisi resulted in a sympathetic speech delivered by the head of the delegation Sergey Maskevitch. He got into the feelings of the Georgian people who, as he said, "have suffered a stress" recently. "We feel the readiness, the potential and the desire for the civilized development of the situation, cooperation and so on. That is why we are so glad to feel the warmth of the Georgian people", - Maskevitch said.

The very fact of a visit to Tbilisi and the statement made by the head of the delegation in Russia was taken as a sign of Byelorussia's position shifting towards Georgia: that is the way the situation was commented upon to IA REGNUM by Director for the Center of Ukraine and Byelorussia Studies of Moscow State University Bogdan Bezpalko.

At the same time, other members of the Byelorussian parliament were discussing the possibilities of cooperation with Abkhazia and South Ossetia. They touched upon political recognition with great care referring to the need of a consensus in the National Assembly. As to the economic cooperation with the republics, it was the delegates' primary concern.

Print version