UN Security Council Resolution 1808 | |
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Date | 15 April 2008 |
Meeting no. | 5,866 |
Code | S/RES/1808 (Document) |
Subject | The situation in Georgia |
Voting summary | 15 voted for None voted against None abstained |
Result | Adopted |
Security Council composition | |
Permanent members | |
Non-permanent members |
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1808 was passed unanimously by the United Nations Security Council on April 15, 2008. It sought to address the ongoing situation in Georgia, which had two breakaway de facto states within its borders, neither of which was recognised by the UN. The primary purpose was to extend the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia, which was mainly composed of Russian peacekeepers. [1]
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), charged with ensuring international peace and security, accepting new members to the United Nations and approving any changes to its charter. Its powers include the establishment of peacekeeping operations and international sanctions as well as the authorization of military actions through resolutions – it is the only body of the United Nations with the authority to issue binding resolutions to member states. The council held its first session on 17 January 1946.
The United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) was established by United Nations Security Council Resolution 858 in August 1993 to verify compliance with a 27 July 1993 ceasefire agreement between the Republic of Georgia and forces in Abkhazia with special attention given to the situation in the city of Sukhumi, Georgia. It was also to investigate reports of ceasefire violations, attempt to resolve such incidents with the parties involved, and to report to the Secretary-General of the United Nations on the implementation of its mandate. 88 military advisors were authorized to be deployed to the region. It ended on 15 June 2009, when Russia vetoed an extension of the mission. The last observers left the region on 15 July 2009.
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country in Eastern Europe and North Asia. At 17,125,200 square kilometres (6,612,100 sq mi), Russia is, by a considerable margin, the largest country in the world by area, covering more than one-eighth of the Earth's inhabited land area, and the ninth most populous, with about 146.79 million people as of 2019, including Crimea. About 77% of the population live in the western, European part of the country. Russia's capital, Moscow, is one of the largest cities in the world and the second largest city in Europe; other major cities include Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg and Nizhny Novgorod. Extending across the entirety of Northern Asia and much of Eastern Europe, Russia spans eleven time zones and incorporates a wide range of environments and landforms. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares land borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia and North Korea. It shares maritime borders with Japan by the Sea of Okhotsk and the U.S. state of Alaska across the Bering Strait. However, Russia recognises two more countries that border it, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, both of which are internationally recognized as parts of Georgia.
Many states, especially Luxembourg, claimed that during the 2008 South Ossetia war, Russia was in violation of this resolution, especially after its recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Abkhazia is now recognised by six UN member states and South Ossetia by five, respectively. [ citation needed ]
Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked microstate in western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France to the south. Its capital, Luxembourg City, is one of the four official capitals of the European Union and the seat of the European Court of Justice, the highest judicial authority in the EU. Its culture, people, and languages are highly intertwined with its neighbours, making it essentially a mixture of French and German cultures, as evident by the nation's three official languages: French, German, and the national language of Luxembourgish. The repeated invasions by Germany, especially in World War II, resulted in the country's strong will for mediation between France and Germany and, among other things, led to the foundation of the European Union.
Abkhazia and South Ossetia are disputed territories in the Caucasus. The central government of Georgia considers the republics under military occupation by Russia. They are partially recognised as independent states by Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Syria. Russia's initial recognition of the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia occurred in the aftermath of the Russo-Georgian War in 2008.
Abkhazia is a de facto sovereign state in the South Caucasus on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, south of the Greater Caucasus mountains in northwestern Georgia. It covers 8,660 square kilometres (3,340 sq mi) and has a population of around 240,000. Its capital is Sukhumi. It is called Аԥсны́ [apʰsˈnɨ] in Abkhazian, აფხაზეთი [ɑpʰxɑzɛtʰi] in Georgian, and Абха́зия [ɐˈpxazʲɪjə] in Russian.
The Security Council of the United Nations passed 32 resolutions where it recognizes Abkhazia as an integral part of Georgia and supports its territorial integrity according to the principles of the international law. The UN is urging both sides to settle the Georgian–Abkhazian conflict through peaceful means by intensifying diplomatic dialogue and ratifying the final accord about the status of Abkhazia in the Georgian Constitution. Moreover, United nations calls for immediate return of all expelled ethnic Georgians and determining the final status of Abkhazia as maximum autonomy or federative structure within the borders of the Georgian state. The resolutions also commend Russia's role as a peacekeeper and facilitator towards a resolution of the conflict. Resolution 1716 also urges Georgia to ensure that no troops are present in the Kodori Gorge and asks Georgia to refrain from provocative actions in the Kodori Gorge.
The European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia is an unarmed peacekeeping mission operated by the European Union in Georgia. EUMM was conceived in September 2008 following the EU-mediated ceasefire agreement, which ended the Russo-Georgian War. The mission has around 200 monitors from various EU member states and operates with an annual budget of roughly 18 million Euros. Its Headquarters are in Tbilisi, with Field Offices in Gori, Mtskheta and Zugdidi.
The Republic of Abkhazia is a self-proclaimed state recognized only by Russia, Syria, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Nauru, Nagorno-Karabakh, South Ossetia, and Transnistria. Abkhazia declared independence from Georgia in 1999, but did not receive recognition from any UN member states until after the 2008 South Ossetia war. One of Abkhazia's main foreign policy goals is searching for further international recognition.
Luxembourg–Russia relations are the bilateral foreign relations between the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the Russian Federation. Luxembourg has an embassy in Moscow and an honorary consulate in Saint Petersburg. Russia has an embassy in the city of Luxembourg.
United Nations Security Council resolution 854, adopted unanimously on 6 August 1993, after recalling Resolution 849 (1993) which concerned a deployment of military observers if a ceasefire was observed between Abkhazia and Georgia, the Council noted that a ceasefire had been signed and approved a dispatch of 10 military observers to the area to observe the implementation of the ceasefire.
United Nations Security Council resolution 881, adopted unanimously on 4 November 1993, after reaffirming resolutions 849 (1993), 854 (1993), 858 (1993) and 876 (1993) concerning the Georgian–Abkhazian war, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 January 1994.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1036, adopted unanimously on 12 January 1996, after reaffirming all resolutions on Georgia, particularly 993 (1995), the Council discussed efforts for a political settlement between Georgia and Abkhazia and extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) for another six months until 12 July 1996.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1124, adopted unanimously on 31 July 1997, after reaffirming all resolutions on Georgia, particularly Resolution 1096 (1997), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 January 1998.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1150, adopted unanimously on 30 January 1998, after reaffirming all resolutions on Georgia, particularly Resolution 1124 (1997), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 July 1998.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1187, adopted unanimously on 30 July 1998, after reaffirming all resolutions on Georgia, particularly Resolution 1150 (1998), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 January 1999, and discussed recent hostilities in the country.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1225, adopted unanimously on 28 January 1999, after reaffirming all resolutions on Georgia, particularly Resolution 1187 (1998), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 July 1999, and expressed an intention to review its mandate.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1255, adopted unanimously on 30 July 1999, after reaffirming all resolutions on Georgia, particularly Resolution 1225 (1999), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 January 2000.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1393, adopted unanimously on 31 January 2002, after reaffirming all resolutions on Abkhazia and Georgia, particularly Resolution 1364 (2001), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 July 2002.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1427, adopted unanimously on 29 July 2002, after reaffirming all resolutions on Abkhazia and Georgia, particularly Resolution 1393 (2002), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 January 2003.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1524, adopted unanimously on 30 January 2004, after reaffirming all resolutions on Abkhazia and Georgia, particularly Resolution 1494 (2003), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until 31 July 2004.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1656, adopted unanimously on January 31, 2006, after reaffirming all resolutions on Abkhazia and Georgia, particularly Resolution 1615 (2005), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until March 31, 2006.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1666, adopted unanimously on March 31, 2006, after reaffirming all resolutions on Abkhazia and Georgia, particularly Resolution 1615 (2005), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until October 15, 2006.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1716, adopted unanimously on October 13, 2006, after reaffirming all resolutions on Abkhazia and Georgia, particularly Resolution 1666 (2006), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) until April 15, 2007.