The 126th meeting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) was held on July 21 in the village Ergneti, near the occupation line with Georgia’s Russian-backed Tskhinvali region.
The meeting was co-facilitated by Bettina Patricia Boughani, head of the EU Monitoring Mission (EUMM) in Georgia, and Christoph Späti, special representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus.
SSSG’s Statement
Georgia’s State Security Service (SSSG) said it discussed “all important incidents” along the occupation line since the previous IPRM meeting.
The agency said its representatives reiterated their “strong demand” for accountability in the November 2023 killing of Georgian citizen Tamaz Ginturi, who was fatally shot by Russian forces during an attempted illegal arrest near the village of Kirbali in the Gori municipality.
The agency also said it raised the issue of releasing all individuals held in illegal detention and condemned the continued “illegal so-called borderization” near the occupation line. It said humanitarian concerns affecting the local population were discussed, with “special attention paid to the issue of free movement.”
EUMM, OSCE Statements
The co-facilitators welcomed the “continued commitment” of all participants to the IPRM format, emphasizing its “crucial role” in “addressing security-related developments and finding practical solutions for conflict-affected communities on both sides of the administrative boundary line.”
“The EUMM and OSCE co-facilitators reiterated their concern over the continuous practice of detentions,” a joint statement said. “They also advocated for enhanced freedom of movement, which would facilitate family visits during the summer.”
The discussion also addressed irrigation and wastewater management, with co-facilitators urging “practical cooperation to ensure sufficient access of the local population on both sides of the ABL to water resources during the dry season.” Both organizations reiterated their readiness to support efforts in this area.
The official press release noted that participants acknowledged the EUMM-managed hotline as “a highly effective tool for establishing a shared understanding of security and humanitarian developments.”
De Facto Authorities’ Statement
Igor Kochiev, the de facto representative of the Russian-backed Tskhinvali region, told journalists following the meeting that the situation along the boundary remains “stable, calm and predictable.”
“Since the previous meeting, a minimal number of violations of the state border and violations of the republic’s airspace by unmanned aerial vehicles have been recorded,” he said.
Representatives of the de facto authorities in the occupied Tskhinvali region once again raised the issue of a Georgian police post in the village of Tsnelisi/Uista. Kochiev said, “The problem is constantly voiced, and the South Ossetian side has proposed withdrawing this post from the territory of the republic.”
He added that the removal of the post is the “only possible solution, including to make life easier for residents living on the right bank of the Lopan River.”
The next meeting within the framework of the IPRM will be held on 29 September 2025.
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