New York - Russia asked the UN Security Council on Tuesday to call on disputing parties in Georgia to sign an agreement not to use force, as tensions mounted between Tbilisi and its breakaway South Ossetia region. Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said a draft resolution was submitted to the 15-nation council demanding a peaceful resolution of the conflict. South Ossetia has accused the Tbilisi government of preparing for an invasion.
South Ossetia declared independence from Georgia following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. But the move was rejected by Tbilisi, which has been trying to stop South Ossetia and the Abkhazia province to secede.
Churkin said the draft is "brief, but clear, to demand that the two sides sign immediately an agreement on the non-use of force".
"At this moment, it's an absolute must to sign if we were to see some political progress and restoration of trust between the two sides," he said.
Churkin said the draft would demand that the two sides comply with 1994 agreements and UN resolutions, which mainly call for a peaceful resolution of disputes over borders and territorial claims.
