Georgia's secession from CIS completed.

18/8 Tass 11

MOSCOW, August 18 (Itar-Tass) - The process of Georgia's walkout of
the Commonwealth of Independent States was completed on Tuesday. It was
initiated by the Georgian government on August 12, 2008.

On August 14, 2008 the Georgian parliament unanimously passed a
decision on Georgia's withdrawal from three agreements within the CIS
framework - the agreement to found the CIS of December 8, 1991, the CIS
Charter (January 22, 1993) and the Economic Union Treaty (September 24,
1993). Four days later, on August 18, 2008 the Georgian Foreign Ministry
notified the CIS Executive Committee of the country's walkout of the
Commonwealth.
"In accordance with the CIS Charter, the formality of the process to
withdraw from that organization by one of its member states takes 12
months, which means that the formal process of Georgia's walkout of the
CIS ends on August 18, 2009," Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister David
Dzhalaganiya said on Monday.
The press service of the CIS Executive Committee officially confirmed
that in line with a decision of the CIS Council of Foreign Ministers on
Georgia's CIS membership of December 9, 2008, Georgia is no longer a CIS
state starting from August 18, 2009.
"Under Article 9 of the CIS Charter any state is free to do so. It is
expected to declare such a decision twelve months in advance. The
liabilities resulting from the CIS membership remain effective until full
compliance with them has been achieved," the press-service said.
As follows from the news release, Georgia declared its intention to
remain a party to a number of treaties is signed as a CIS member.
The group of CIS experts has gathered more than once to consider
Georgia's participation in international treaties and decisions by the CIS
bodies to have arrived at the conclusion there are no legal obstacles to
this.
"After its walkout of the CIS Georgia will be able to continue to
participate in about 70 treaties," the press-service said.
As for the treaties and decisions effective only for CIS members, they
shall not apply to Georgia as of August 18, 2009. The list of such
documents consists of over 400 titles. A draft agreement stipulating these
conditions is to be considered at next sessions of the Council of Foreign
Ministers and the Council of CIS Heads of State.
Georgia's walkout of the Commonwealth of Independent States will have
adverse effects on its ordinary citizens, the Russian Foreign Ministry
said on Monday.
"There should be no over-dramatizing of this situation. Any sovereign
state (and Georgia is one) has the right to decide on its membership of
this or that organization," the Russian Foreign Ministry said. "It is a
sovereign right of any state.
At the same time the Russian Foreign Ministry believes that Georgia's
walkout of the CIS will have adverse effects on the ordinary citizens.
Georgia's secession from the CIS is an imprudent and demonstrative
step, First deputy chairman of the State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee
Leonid Slutsky said.
"The decision to withdraw from the Commonwealth will not give Georgia
anything but unnecessary trouble and a doubtful political effect and will
only impact its citizens adversely," he said on Monday.
"Now Tbilisi will have to restore the treaties that were made within
the CIS, including on visa-free travel, and on educational and labour
migration. This may prove problematic in the current situation," the
lawmaker added.
He believes that the Georgian leadership keeps on driving itself
further and further into the corner.
At the same time, Slutsky noted that there is no need to dramatise the
situation. "There will be no terrible consequences, especially for the
Commonwealth," he added.

.Minister demands to use more specialists in clearing debris.

SAYANO-SHUSHENSKAYA HYDROELECTRIC PLANT (Khakassia), August 18
(Itar-Tass) - Russian Minister for Emergency Situations Sergei Shoigu
demanded late on Monday to increase the number of specialists clearing the
debris at the Sayano-Shushenskaya hydroelectric plant, where a major
accident occurred on Monday.
At a session at the hydroelectric plant, he said the amount of
rescuers working at the site "is insufficient". At the moment 35 people
are clearing the debris, working in three shifts. Specialists rotate every
two hours. All in all, 300 people are engaged in the work to liquidate the
aftermath of the accident.
Shoigu said up to 350 people must work in each shift in the operation
to clear the debris, stressing that some people are still missing. He also
ordered to supply rescue units with all necessary hardware. Shoigu gave
instructions to use helicopters to airlift people to the site of the
tragedy and to make air reconnaissance.
The minister also said that a special laboratory to determine
stability of constructions would be delivered from Moscow shortly.
The accident at Khakassia's biggest hydropower plant happened early on
Monday. As a result, three units were destroyed.
There are 10 units at the hydropower plant with a combined capacity of
6,500 megawatts. Ten people were killed, 11 injured and the fate of 72
people is being ascertained. One of the possible causes of the accident is
a breakdown of hydro mechanisms and hydro units, Sayano-Shushenskaya
hydropower plant Director Nikolai Neboiko said.
Rescue work is underway. There may be people in the inundated machine
room. Sixty people were working at the power plant at the time of the
accident.
The Sayano-Shushenskaya hydropower plant is located in Khakassia on
the river Yenisei, 180 kilometers from Abakan and is the biggest
hydropower plant in Russia. Its dam is 242 meters high and 1,066
kilometers long. Its rated capacity is 6,700 megawatts. The last unit was
commissioned in 1978. The power plant's annual production is about 24
billion kilowatts/hour.
A special commission is investigating the causes of the accident.
-0-zhe/