• Country/entity

  Georgia
  Russia
  Ossetia
  

• Region

  Europe and Eurasia
  Europe and Eurasia
  Europe and Eurasia
  

• Agreement name

  Memorandum on Measures of Providing Safety and Strengthening of Mutual Confidence between the Sides in the Georgian-Ossetian Conflict

• Date

  16 May 1996

• Agreement status

  Multiparty signed/agreed

• Interim arrangement

  Yes

• Agreement/conflict level

  Intrastate/intrastate conflict ( Georgian Separatist Conflicts (1989 - ) )

• Stage

  Pre-negotiation/process

• Conflict nature

  Government/territory

• Peace process

  South Ossetia peace process

• Parties

  the Georgian side :
  the South Ossetian side:
  The Republic of North Ossetia-Alania (the Russian Federation)
  The Russian Federation:

• Third parties

  Through the meditation of: OSCE

• Description

  Short agreement outlining provisions for the de-militarization of the conflict zone, a re-commitment to the peace effort, an amnesty for those who did not commit military crimes or crimes against civilians during fighting, a tentative mention of peacekeeping forces, and the limiting of check points, as well as the involvement of civil forces.

• Agreement document

  GE_960516_Memorandum on Measures of Providing Safety and Strengthening of Mutual Confidence.pdf | Download PDF

• Agreement document (original language)

  GE_RU_960516_Memorandum on Measures_RU.pdf | Download PDF

Groups

Gender

State definition

Governance

Power sharing

Human rights and equality

Rights related issues

Rights institutions

Justice sector reform

Socio-economic reconstruction

Land, property and environment

Security sector

Transitional justice

Implementation

Memorandum on measures to ensure the security and the strengthening of mutual trust between the sides in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict

Representatives of the Georgian and South Ossetian sides under the mediation of the Russian Federation representatives and with the participation of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) held talks on further progress towards a comprehensive political settlement of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict and,

wanting to eliminate the consequences of the conflict and restore the relationship between peace and mutual respect;

Convinced of the need to put an end to the heavy legacy of the past few years and take the path leading to peace, trust and harmony;

Reaffirming their commitment to the UN Charter and fundamental principles and decisions of the OSCE, the universally recognized norms of international law;

Guided by the principle of territorial integrity of states and the right of peoples to self-determination;

We note with satisfaction that on the basis of the Agreement on Principles of Settlement of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone and entering the Joint Peacekeeping Forces in July 1992 halted hostilities in the conflict zone;

expressing readiness to follow the path of resolving the conflict in a spirit of mutual respect exclusively by political means;

believing it necessary to implement steps that would lead to a comprehensive settlement of the conflict,

have agreed as follows:

1. The Parties to the conflict to renounce the use or threat of use of force, by exerting political, economic and other forms of pressure on each other.

2. The Parties shall take all necessary measures to prevent and suppress any illegal actions, infringement of the rights of persons based on ethnicity.

3. The Parties shall carry out concrete measures to ensure a decent solution to the problem of refugees and displaced persons, victims of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict.

4. The Parties agree that a person who participated in the armed conflict, but did not commit war crimes, and crimes against the civilian population shall not be subject to criminal prosecution.

Parties shall establish as soon as the necessary conditions milking operation of law enforcement agencies to investigate these crimes, to prosecute the perpetrators.

5. The parties noted with satisfaction the positive nature of the practice of regular meetings between representatives of law enforcement agencies and will provide comprehensive assistance to their efforts to improve the crime situation in the conflict zone.

6. As we move towards a comprehensive settlement of the Georgian-Ossetian zone of conflict on the basis of special arrangements will be gradually demilitarized.

peacekeeping forces may be in the demilitarized zone.

7. The parties consider it desirable to develop within the framework of the Joint Control Commission plan for the phased reduction of outposts and checkpoints of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces, concentrating in places of permanent deployment, the organization of their services, taking into account public safety.

8. The Parties express their readiness to jointly and in cooperation with international, including non-governmental organizations to hold a meeting of representatives of the Georgian and Ossetian political, non-governmental organizations, scientists and representatives of the Russian Federation and other countries, "round tables" of representatives of the creative intelligentsia, as well as a meeting of journalists to share objective information.

The Parties shall take measures for the safe movement and stay of members of the media.

9. The two sides will continue negotiations to reach a comprehensive political settlement.

10. The sides noted with satisfaction the readiness of the Russian Federation to be a guarantor of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, to participate in the implementation of the agreements reached in the present Memorandum and the OSCE to act as a facilitator to this.

11. This Memorandum shall enter into force upon signature.

For the Georgian side Menagarishvili.

For the South Ossetian side B. Gabaraev.

For the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania (Russian Federation) A. Galazov.

brokered:

For the Russian side Primakov.

For OSCE D. Boden.

May 16, 1996