DUMA PREPARING FOR HEARINGS ON ABKHAZ, SOUTH OSSETIAN, TRANSDNIESTRIAN INDEPENDENCE

Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS
February 26, 2008
Russia

It is expected that the Russian State Duma will hold parliamentary
hearings on the recognition of the independence of Abkhazia, South
Ossetia and Transdniestria.

"The Duma committee for CIS affairs and compatriots asked the Council
of the State Duma to hold parliamentary hearings on the settlement of
ethnic conflicts in the post-Soviet territories and the recognition
of Abkhaz, South Ossetia and Transdniestrian independence on March
13," first deputy head of this Duma committee, CIS Studies Institute
Director Konstantin Zatulin told Interfax-AVN on Tuesday.

"The State Duma Council should look into this motion on March 4,"
the MP said.

It is planned that speakers of the Abkhaz, South Ossetian,
Transdniestrian and Nagorno-Karabakh parliaments, as well as
representatives of Georgia, Moldova, Azerbaijan and Armenian will be
invited for the hearings, Zatulin said.

"Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transdniestria asked Russia to recognize
their independence before the recent events in Kosovo," the MP said.

Speaking about the recognition of independence of these breakaway
republics, the MP said, "We should start the process of recognizing
the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia."

Meanwhile, head of the Duma committee for CIS affairs and compatriots
Alexei Ostrovsky from the LDPR faction noted that the Nagorno-Karabakh
issue is not expected to be looked into at the hearings.

"In this regard I do not understand concerns of the Azeri Foreign
Ministry, which stated last week that is going to take measures over
the issue," Ostrovsky told Interfax-AVN.