The Sukhumi massacre took place on September 27, 1993, during and after the fall of Sukhumi into separatist hands in the course of the War in Abkhazia. It was perpetrated against Georgian civilians of Sukhumi, mainly by militia forces of Abkhaz separatists, their North Caucasian and Russian allies. It became part of a violent ethnic cleansing campaign carried out by the separatists.
On September 27, 1993, separatist forces violated the ceasefire initiated by the United Nations and guaranteed by the Russian Federation, which barred both sides from performing military operations. As part of the ceasefire, Georgian forces had withdrawn their heavy artillery and tanks from Sukhumi. Abkhaz, Confederation of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus, Cossack and Russian militants stormed Sukhumi early in the morning. Confronted by large numbers of combatants, the Georgian army units that remained in the city were unable to prevent the separatist advance into the city. By noon, separatist militants and their allies had taken over television buildings and bridges. Georgian forces retreated to the Government building of the Abkhazian Autonomous Republic, where they intended to provide security for members of Abkhazian Autonomous Republic Government. By late afternoon, the city was overrun by separatists and their allies.
Placing their hopes on the ceasefire, a large number of civilians remained in the city. The separatists and their allies started to sweep through the streets of Sukhumi rounding up all civilians that they found. Men, women and children were executed in the streets, on the roads and inside their own apartments, houses and back yards. According to the witnesses, many people became objects of torture, and some were forced to watch as their own family members were killed—children in front of their parents, and parents in front of their children.
Women became targets of sadistic rape. Refugees recall people being burned to death, disembowelled and dismembered while still alive. The massacres occurred in the city park, in front of the governmental building, in schools and hospitals. Almost all members of the Abkhaz government (those who refused to leave the city), Zhiuli Shartava, Guram Gabiskiria, Mamia Alasania, and Raul Eshba were captured and executed.[7]
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European Commission releases €1.5 billion in macro-financial assistance to Ukraine
Today the European Union is providing another €1.5 billion to Ukraine under its annual macro-financial assistance package.
The European Commission made today a third payment of €1.5 billion under the Macro-financial Assistance (MFA)+ package for Ukraine, worth up to €18 billion.
This support will help Ukraine cover its immediate financial needs: to continue paying salaries and pensions and to maintain basic public services such as hospitals, schools and housing for the displaced. It will also allow Ukraine to ensure macroeconomic stability and restore critical infrastructure destroyed by Russia in its war of aggression, such as energy infrastructure, water systems, transport networks, roads and bridges.
Today’s payment comes after the Commission found that Ukraine continued to make satisfactory progress to strengthen the rule of law, enhance financial stability, improve the functioning of the gas system and promote a better business climate.
This finding will also enable the disbursement of two further monthly payments of €1.5 billion each in May and June.
Overall, since the start of the war, the support to Ukraine and Ukrainians amounts to around €68 billion.
“We will continue helping Ukraine resist Russia’s aggression, keep its institutions and infrastructure running, and conduct crucial reforms,” President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter.
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The Regime of Tyrant Putin and his Shameful Army should Unequivocally and Unconditionally get Defeated in this War !!!
February 24, 2022 is the day which will be imprinted in the memory of the people of Ukraine and the whole civilized world as the first hours of severe war of Russia against Ukraine. Today, it has been exactly a year since Russia has started a wide-scale war in the middle of Europe against independent Ukraine, which at the moment gets continued with mass assaults of heavy artillery bombs. The day today is the most painful for every Ukrainian. This is the day which substantially changed everything and moved us to the new world of unpleasant reality.
During this one-year people of Ukraine have been exposed to a lot of suffering, sadness and anxiety. Atrocities of Russian invaders and destruction are indescribable. The destructive war started by Putin led to everyday deaths of thousands of innocent peaceful citizens, elderly and children. The Russian barbarian army has already exterminated 459 Ukrainian children and these data are not final. When on everyday basis we see terrible acts of the Russian invader, I have no doubt that Putin is a tyrant and the most dangerous terrorist in the 21st-century world. When I think about what the people of Ukraine have to stand, the feeling of pain emerges and my hatred towards the Russian invader gets even more intensive.
Tyrant Putin and his terrorist authority made millions of Ukrainians to essentially leave their homes. But, despite this hard suffering, brave Ukrainian people demonstrated to everyone that fighting for independence, freedom, values, identity, territorial integrity and the strength to fight for the right to live on one’s own land is in unity and this strength is much more than the will of any Kremlin dictator. Unity, bravery and persistent fight of Ukrainian people against the Russian military aggression is exemplary for the whole world.
These hard days gave the world civilized community the feeling of solidarity and it is not a coincidence that today, on February 24, the war anniversary, the American Friendship Club decided to hold the solidarity action near the territory of the embassy of Ukraine which was dedicated to the memory of peaceful Ukrainian children, elderly and soldiers who died as a result of the Russian war.
At the same time, with this event we wanted to once again show everyone and, most importantly, the Russian authority in Georgia, what the attitude of freedom-loving Georgian nation is towards brave people of Ukraine and our common values.Besides, the aim of today’s solidarity action was to once again remind to the Russian authority of Georgia how much evil party and individual collaboration with tyrant Putin brings.
Finally, I consider that besides military support it is extremely significant not to slowdown and further enhance support of brave people of Ukraine.
I am sure very soon brave Ukrainean people and the whole civilized world together with them will celebrate victory on the land of freedom and defeat of the tyrannous regime of Putin and his shameful army.
Indeed! Russia should unequivocally and unconditionally get defeated in this war!!!
Glory to Ukraine! Glory to Georgia and the civilized world!!!
President of the American Friendship Club - Ilia Zukakishvili
February 24, 2023
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European Commission proposes ninth package of sanctions against Russia
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced its proposal for a ninth package of sanctions against Russia on Wednesday evening.
The Commission proposes to add almost 200 additional individuals and entities to the EU’s sanctions list. This includes the Russian armed forces, as well as individual officers and defence industrial companies, members of the State Duma and Federation Council, ministers, governors and political parties. “This list covers key figures in Russia’s brutal and deliberate missile strikes against civilians, in the kidnapping of Ukrainian children into Russia, and in the theft of Ukrainian agricultural products,” says the press release by the Commission.
Secondly, the Commission proposes to introduce sanctions against three additional Russian banks, including a full transaction ban on the Russian Regional Development Bank “to further paralyse Putin’s cash machines”.
Third, the Commission suggests imposing new export controls and restrictions, particularly for dual-use goods. This includes key chemicals, nerve agents, electronics and IT components that could be used by the Russian war machine.
Fourth, the sanctions will cut Russia’s access to all sorts of drones and unmanned aerial vehicles. The Commission proposes to ban the direct exports of drone engines to Russia and the export to any third countries, such as Iran, which could supply drones to Russia.
Proposed economic measures against the Russian energy and mining sector include a ban on new mining investments in Russia.
Ursula von der Leyen also said that the Commission aims to target the Russian propaganda machine by taking four additional channels off the air and all other distribution platforms.
She added that this package comes on top of the full EU import ban on Russian seaborne oil that came into force this week, as well as the global oil price cap agreed between the G7.
“Russia continues to bring death and devastation to Ukraine,” said von der Leyen. “We stand by Ukraine and we are making Russia pay for its cruelty.”
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MEETING OF THE CO-CHAIRS OF THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL TURKMEN-RUSSIAN COMMISSION ON ECONOMIC COOPERATION
Today, on November 15, 2022, a meeting was held in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan between the co-chairs of the Intergovernmental Turkmen-Russian Commission on Economic Cooperation, Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan R.Meredov and Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation A.Overchuk.
At the beginning of the meeting, the importance and productivity of today's meeting of A.Overchuk with the President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov was noted, during which the guidelines for further promotion of multifaceted cooperation between the two countries were determined.
The co-chairs of the commission discussed in detail the prospects for partnership in the financial and banking sector, the oil, transport, electric power industries, as well as in the areas of education, culture, healthcare and tax administration.
Also, issues of preparation for the upcoming 12th meeting of the joint commission in Moscow on December 6-7 this year, on the sidelines of which it is planned to sign more than ten bilateral documents in various fields, were considered separately.
Further, the meeting continued in an expanded format with the participation of heads and representatives of a number of relevant ministries and agencies of Turkmenistan and Russia, within which the above mentioned topics were discussed in more depth.
Discussing cooperation in the field of education and culture, the parties expressed the need for further intensification of mutual actions in order to expand humanitarian cooperation. In particular, the importance of implementing projects for the creation of the Turkmen-Russian University and the construction of a new building of the Russian Drama Theater named after A.S.Pushkin in Ashgabat was noted.
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According to Droa, L. Ioseliani and representatives of Georgian Dream did not attend the PACE voting procedure where Russia was declared a terrorist regime
According to Droa, Levan Ioseliani and representatives of Georgian Dream did not attend the PACE voting procedure where Russia was declared a terrorist regime.
"On October 13, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe voted to declare Russia a terrorist regime. The voting process was attended by 100 representatives of the member states, of which only one abstained from taking a position, and 99 unanimously declared Russia a terrorist regime.
The representatives of Georgian Dream, as well as the member of the Citizens party, the deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia, Levan Ioseliani, did not attend the mentioned vote and, therefore, did not support the declaration of Russia as a terrorist regime.
Only Khatia Dekanoidze (UNM) attended the voting from Georgia, who supported the said decision. This is confirmed by the data of the voting archive of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
This step once again emphasizes the loyalty of Georgian Dream to Putin's regime and the fact that Russia is a natural political and civilizational space for them.
For Georgia, as a state occupied by Russia and a country with a Russian colonial past, the mentioned fact and the pro-Russian rule of Georgian Dream are not only shameful, but also pose a danger for us to stay in the ruins of a defeated imperial state. We must do everything to get our homeland back and finally establish a place for it in the Euro-Atlantic family," Droa says in a statement and shares the relevant link: https://pace.coe.int/en/votes/39122
