The council of Europe as an internationmal actor in the Abkhazian and south Ossetian conflict
Philipp Kratzer
2016
unpublished
This master thesis assesses the role of the Council of Europe as an international actor in the Georgian-Russian conflict of 2008 over Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Its main goal is to examine the basis for the disputes in these two Georgian regions, analyse actions taken by Council of Europe actors within the first six months after the Five-day war in August 2008, and examine the characteristics of the Council of Europe as an international actor during this immediate response. An analysis of
more »
... il of Europe documents, secondary sources as well as seven expert interviews with (deputy) members of the Council of Europe and the Georgian Ambassador to Austria and the OSCE are conducted. Although Russia recognised Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent, sovereign states in 2008, this thesis concludes that none of Krasner's (1999) four concepts of sovereignty can be applied to these two regions. It is argued that the main authority and control functions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia are dominated or assisted by the Russia Federation. These conflicts in the South Caucasus leading to two wars during the 1990s and the Five-day war in 2008 were always over territory and not religion or ethnicity. The tensions between Georgia and the two regions intensified after the break up of the Soviet Union. The Council of Europe proved its role in the aftermath of the Five-day war as an international crisis actor, especially in the human rights dimension. This intergovernmental organisation condemned the outbreak of the war and violation of Articles 2 and 3 of the European Convention of Human Rights, namely the right to life and prohibition of torture. The Commissioner for Human Rights, for instance, negotiated hundreds of exchanges of prisoners and corpses. The key role of the Council of Europe lies in the co-operation with other international organisation such as the EU, OSCE and UN. This relationship was not only been formalized (exchange of views, joint meetings). In the aftermath of the Five-day war, the Council of Europe sta [...]
doi:10.25365/thesis.43237
fatcat:qnskzr7k2ncnpisem6lym3oujy