The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania,

Implementing the powers of the Seimas to consider issues of foreign policy, as stipulated in subparagraph 16 of Article 67 of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania,

Adhering to the universally recognised principles and norms of international law, as obliged by paragraph 1 of Article 135 of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, in particular the principles embedded in the Charter of the United Nations, such as non-use of force and pacific settlement of international disputes, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Rejecting as incompatible with the principles of international law and justice the policy of coercion and pressure in respect of smaller neighbouring states, based on the conceptions of “near abroad” and similar zones of exclusive interest,

Deploring all forms of aggression, including armed attack and invasion of the territory of another state, bombardment, occupation and annexation of the territory of another state, as well as illegal mass conferral of citizenship and establishment of pseudo-state puppet entities in the occupied territory, gross and systematic violations of human rights, including ethnic cleansing, other crimes against humanity and war crimes,

Noting that the population of a certain territory cannot be entitled to self-determination where, with the involvement of a foreign state, the demographic situation in that territory has been changed in essence due to ethnic cleansing and the citizenship of that foreign state has been conferred to the remaining residents on a massive scale,

Emphasizing that under international law any seizure of a territory by the threat or use of force as well as any pseudo-state puppet entities established in the seized territory cannot be recognized,

Having regard to more than thirty resolutions on Georgia adopted in 1993-2009 by the United Nations Security Council, which provided for such principles of settlement of the conflict regarding Abkhazia as respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia, inviolability of the internationally recognized borders of Georgia, unacceptability of changes in the demographic situation and composition of the population of Abkhazia brought about through the use of violence, the imprescriptible right of refugees and displaced persons to return to their homes in secure conditions, peaceful settlement of the conflict by granting Abkhazia a broad autonomy within the State of Georgia,

Supporting the statement of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania of 15 July 2009 on the situation in Georgia, the declaration of the Baltic Assembly of 28 November 2009 on the situation in Georgia and the resolution of the Community of Democracies Parliamentary Forum of 12 March 2010 on the situation in Georgia,

Regretting that the Russian Federation does not fulfil its commitments undertaken under the Cease-fire Agreement of 12 August 2008 by failing to withdraw its forces from the occupied territory of Georgia to the pre-conflict positions and by illegally recognizing the puppet entities supported by it in the occupied territory of Georgia, also has blocked the extension of the term of observer missions of the United Nations and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and hinders the activities of the EU observer mission in the occupied territory of Georgia,

Recognizes the integrity of Georgia’s territory, which includes, under Article 1 of the Constitution of Georgia, the territory of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia and the autonomous entity of South Ossetia, as well as the inviolability of its internationally recognized borders as referred to in Article 2 of the Constitution of Georgia,   

Assesses the continuing presence of the Russian armed forces in the territory of Georgia and the activities of puppet entities in Abkhazia and South Ossetia as the illegal occupation of the respective parts of the territory of Georgia, which constitutes a serious breach of the international obligation of non-use of force and of the threat to use force, as arising under a peremptory norm of general international law,    

States that, under the rules of international law, in the event of a serious breach of such an international obligation, states have the duty to cooperate in bringing to an end that serious breach through lawful means, not to recognize as lawful the situation created by that breach and not to render aid and assistance in maintaining such a situation,

Declares that the restoration of peace and security in the Russian-Georgian conflict zone should be based on the following key principles: withdrawal of the Russian armed forces from the occupied parts of the Georgian territory, non-recognition of the pseudo-state puppet entities operating in the occupied territory of Georgia, non-use of force and other forms of violence, return of refugees and displaced persons to their homes in secure conditions, restoration of Georgia’s jurisdiction over Abkhazia and South Ossetia, introduction of the model of autonomy and self-government in those regions that would comply with the Constitution of Georgia and be attractive to the local population, ensuring of the principles of democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights and freedoms in the entire territory of Georgia, and a broad participation of the international community and international organizations in supporting the implementation of the above-mentioned principles,

Calls on both sides of the conflict to enable dialogue fulfilling the commitments under the Cease-fire Agreement of 12 August 2008 and refraining from actions escalating the conflict and deferring a peaceful resolution of the conflict in compliance with international law,

Encourages the development of democracy, the establishment of the rule of law and other internal reforms in Georgia with a view to effectively tackling the issues relating to internal policy and restoration of jurisdiction over the occupied territories and becoming a full-fledged member of European and trans-Atlantic organizations, 

Proposes that the President and the Government of the Republic of Lithuania adhere to the principles laid down in this Resolution when deciding on foreign policy issues and implementing foreign policy, also seek that these principles are implemented when shaping and pursuing a common European Union foreign policy, tackling international security and human rights issues at the United Nations, NATO, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Council of Europe and other international organizations.

 

 

 

 

SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS                                                  IRENA DEGUTIENĖ