De facto Tskhinvali official calls Tbilisi’s position “restraint, prudent” over calls to use force in occupied regions

Konstantin Kochiev, the representative of the delegation of Georgia’s de facto Tskhinvali region to the international discussions in Geneva, has praised Tbilisi for its “restraint and prudent” policy in response to “various calls” to reintegrate its territories with the use of force as Russia is busy with its war in Ukraine.

He said that although “foreign partners” were urging Tbilisi to use force for strategic purposes, there had been some reluctance and prudence on the part of Georgia in recent months, which Kochiev said was “partly optimistic” about drafting a non-use of force agreement with the central Georgian authorities.

Kochiev made the statement during a meeting with the co-chairs of the Geneva International Discussions in Tskhinvali, local media reported on Thursday.

The Georgian Dream officials have stated many times that the country will neither open a second front for Russia in Georgia, nor the latter has plans to reintegrate its Abkhazia and Tskhinvali regions forcibly.

As for the non-use of force agreement, Tbilisi has no plans to sign it with de facto authorities and it would be the recognition of the regions as independent states.

Russia recognized Abkhazia and Tskhinvali as independent states after the Russia-Georgia 2008 war.

Since then only Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Syria have joined Russia in the illegal move, while the rest of the international community is unanimous that the regions are occupied by Russia.