Russia does not trust Georgian promises

Russia has its doubts about the promises of Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili not to use force against his country’s breakaway republics, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.

“These promises leave an ambiguous impression after throwing aside eloquence and nice literary quotations,” said a statement posted on the ministry’s website.

Russia and three other countries recognized the independence of Georgia’s two breakaway republics, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, after Georgia engaged in a brief war in 2008 in an attempt to reinstate control over the regions.

The foreign ministry also said that Tbilisi’s “unilateral solemn obligation” not to use force did not match Saakashvili’s “confrontational humiliating rhetoric toward the Abkhaz and South Ossetian people.”

“Russia still believes that the way to peace and security in the Trans-Caucasus lays through judicial obligations on non-using force between Tbilisi, (South Ossetian capital) Tskhinval and Tbilisi and (Abkhaz capital) Sukhum,” the ministry said.

Saakashvili recently made a commitment to not use force against Russia to regain control of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.