A Lesson Unlearned

Abstract

The article describes the preconditions and consequences of the Yalta meeting on confidence-building measures between the Georgian and Abkhaz parties. Assistance in its organisation as well as participation in the work of the Group of Friends of the UN Secretary-General on Georgia were of great importance for Ukraine’s international image. Ukrainian diplomats have come a long way in convincing UN members of the need and usefulness of Ukraine’s involvement in the Geneva process and in proving to the Abkhaz side that, despite the high level of partnership between Ukraine and Georgia, Ukraine is impartial in the conflict resolution process. Although the admission of our country to the Group of Friends of the UN Secretary-General on Georgia was not achieved immediately, one of the key roles of Ukraine in holding the Yalta meeting cannot be denied, as the fruits of Ukraine’s work and our state’s constructive position in resolving conflicts in the territory of the former Soviet Union, particularly in Transnistria, have already been confirmed by the international community. This paper highlights the mechanisms of disguising the hegemonic policy of the Russian Federation, which imposes its ‘peacekeeping’ participation in the settlement of armed conflicts in strategically important regions of the post-Soviet space. The article also mentions the importance of recognising the parties to the conflict and how the status of a ‘non-participant in the conflict’ is used by the Russian Federation for its own purposes to promote the policy of regional domination by means of military-strategic and economic potential. Conclusions are made on the geopolitical processes in the territory of the former USSR. Keywords: history of Ukrainian diplomacy, Group of Friends of the UN Secretary-General on Georgia, Georgian-Abkhaz conflict, peacekeeping activities.