130th IPRM Meeting Held in Ergneti

2026-01-30 - 10:18

The 130th meeting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) was held on January 29 in the village of Ergneti, near the occupation line with Georgia’s Russia-occupied Tskhinvali region. It was the first IPRM meeting of the year. The meeting was initially scheduled for February 4. The meeting was co-facilitated by Christoph Späti, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus, and Bettina Patricia Boughani, Head of the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM). SSSG Statement The State Security Service of Georgia (SSSG) said “all important incidents” along the occupation line that occurred since the previous IPRM meeting were discussed. Similar to the previous meetings, SSSG representatives “demanded the punishment of those responsible for the killing of Georgian citizen Tamaz Ginturi.” According to the statement, SSSG representatives “placed particular emphasis” on the issue of individuals held in illegal detention and called for their immediate release. The discussions also focused on the illegal restriction of movement, including the movement regime at the so-called crossing points. EUMM, OSCE Statements According to the co-facilitators, Participants at the first IPRM meeting of 2026 discussed “recent security developments” along the administrative boundary line (ABL), including illegal detentions, restrictions on freedom of movement, and the overall security situation on the ground. “The co-facilitators reiterated their concern that the continued practice of detentions affects the perceived sense of security by women and men living in vicinity to the ABL,” the press release said, adding, “They drew attention to the high number of detainees currently held in Tskhinvali and called for the prompt resolution of detention cases through a humanitarian approach.” The discussions further emphasized that freedom of movement for the “local population across the ABL would improve the situation and build more trust.” “All participants commended the EUMM-managed Hotline as an effective tool for sharing reliable and timely information on security and humanitarian matters,” the press release concluded. The next IPRM meeting is scheduled to take place on March 31, 2026. De Facto Authority’s Statement Igor Kochiev, the de facto representative of the Russian-occupied Tskhinvali region, told reporters after the meeting that five violations of the occupation line by Georgian citizens were recorded. He said criminal proceedings were initiated against one individual, while the remaining four were fined and expelled. “I can say that there have been no violations by the Georgian law enforcement agencies during the past period,” Kochiev said. “In other words, Georgian police officers are not violating the border, and this has been going on for quite some time, which we consider to be a very positive development.” According to him, an alleged incident involving “European representatives was discussed separately at the meeting,” and “a case of border violation by a patrol of the EUMM” was emphasized. Kochiev further expressed hope that the Georgian police post near the village of Tsnelisi, known as the Chorchana checkpoint, which was established under former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, would be removed, and said he expects 2026 to be “more positive and productive.” Gakharia, now an opposition leader exiled in Germany, who has been charged in absentia and faces a lengthy prison sentence over the installation of the Chorchana checkpoint, responded to Igor Kochiev’s remarks on X, saying the checkpoint “protected our land from illegal seizure and the local population from creeping occupation.” “The charges brought against me over the Chorchana case constitute an act of political persecution and a direct attack on Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, clearly coordinated with Russia and the occupation regime,” Gakharia wrote. The Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) was established in 2009 within the framework of the Geneva International Discussions that followed the 2008 Russo-Georgian war. It serves as a forum for the regular discussion of security-related incidents and developments on the ground. IPRM meetings have been held regularly in Ergneti, near the Tskhinvali occupation line, with the participation of representatives from Tbilisi and the Tskhinvali de facto authorities. In contrast, meetings in Gali, in occupied Abkhazia, have been suspended multiple times, from 2012 to 2016, and again since 2018. The meetings are co-facilitated by the OSCE and the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM). Also Read: 31/12/2025 – Tamar Mearakishvili Released From Detention in Tskhinvali 23/12/2025 – 129th IPRM Meeting Held in Ergneti 17/12/2025 – GD Adopts Laws Ending Voting for Georgians Abroad, Scrapping Anti-Corruption Bureau, ‘South Ossetia Administration’