Daur Kove, the Minister of Foreign Affairs held a video conference with the Co-Chairs of the Geneva International Discussions on Security and Stability in Transcaucasia on April 22,2020.
Daur Kove told the co-chairs of the Geneva Discussions on the measures taken in the Republic of Abkhazia to combat the spread of coronavirus infection. He expressed gratitude to the World Health Organization and other international organizations working in the territory of Abkhazia for the assistance and cooperation in the fight against the coronavirus infection in the Republic.
The Foreign Minister of Abkhazia focused the attention of the co-chairs on the fact that the top leadership of Georgia is trying to distort the real situation, making statements that, allegedly, all the international assistance provided to Abkhazia in the framework of the fight against the coronavirus pandemic is carried out on the initiative of the Georgian authorities.
It was noted that a supposedly “difficult situation in the occupied territories” was mentioned during the video conference of George Gakhariya, the Prime Minister of Georgia with Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission which discussed issues related to the coronavirus pandemic. Thus, the Georgian government is trying to present the situation in such a way that all international agencies provide assistance to Abkhazia only at the request of the Georgian authorities
“We are very grateful to all the international organizations that have responded to our request for their support. I believe that the attempts of the Georgian authorities to speculate on these topics and give them a political color look extremely cynical amid the pandemic problem that the whole world is facing today,” said Daur Kove.
The Minister also emphasized that the Government of Abkhazia is ready to conduct a direct dialogue with the leaders of all international organizations interested in providing of the real assistance to Abkhazia in the fight against the spread of coronavirus.
Toivo Klaar, the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus stressed the importance of coordinating of the efforts to combat the spread of the virus. He also noted that the Geneva International Discussions are devoted specifically to security issues and at the moment this format is the most appropriate.
Cihan Sultanoglu, the UN representative at the Geneva International Discussions expressed gratitude to Daur Kove for the high level of communication and prompt response to all emerging issues including during the delivery of necessary assistance to Abkhazia. She emphasized that the UN will continue these efforts to support the Republic. “We have a lot of challenges, but we need to focus on helping all people affected by the virus. Now it’s really important to push aside all disagreements and the coordination of these actions is of paramount importance in helping those who need it,” Sultanoglu noted.
Rudolf Mikhalka, the OSCE Special Representative for the South Caucasus said that the OSCE is currently considering the possibility of providing of the assistance to Abkhazia, discussing details and mechanisms that will determine the delivery of aid to the Republic. The above mentioned will be part of the support from WHO and the UN. He expressed the hope that all efforts made will yield results.
Bjorn Kuene, the Political Advisor to the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus noted the importance of continuing to work on the Geneva Discussion agenda. He emphasized that it was already necessary to start discussing these issues in order to avoid of new complications in the future.
During the conversation, Daur Kove asked the co-chairs to assist in the acquisition of a computer tomograph for the Gudauta Central District Hospital which is a reserve hospital for patients with coronavirus infection.
All participants in the videoconference noted the need and importance of holding such events, since today it is impossible to determine the exact date of the next round of Geneva discussions planned for July.