Russia’s President Vladimir Putin met on June 1 with leader of breakaway South Ossetia Leonid Tibilov in Moscow.
Implementation of a treaty on “alliance and integration” between Moscow and Tskhinvali, signed by Putin and Tibilov in Moscow in March, was discussed at the meeting, the Kremlin said.
“Situation is developing quite energetically,” Putin told Tibilov. “We are moving forward after the signing of the treaty on integration – even before the treaty goes through relevant procedures.”
The treaty was submitted for ratification to Russia’s lower house of parliament, State Duma, late last month.
“The treaty is awaiting its implementation,” Tibilov said. “We are already working on proposals, which will become basis for additional agreements, which are needed for complete realization of the treaty.”
President Putin met leader of Georgia’s another breakaway region of Abkhazia, Raul Khajimba, on May 15 in Sochi.
According to the treaty on “alliance and integration” between Moscow and Tskhinvali, “separate units of the armed forces and security agencies of the South Ossetian Republic will become part of the armed forces and security agencies of the Russian Federation.”
It also envisages “integration” of customs service of the breakaway region with the one of the Russian Federation.
Just like with Abkhazia, with which Moscow signed a similar agreement in November 2014, the treaty with Tskhinvali sets up a Joint Information-Coordinating Center of law enforcement agencies for the purpose of “coordinating” fight against “organized crime and other grave crimes.”
Russia takes commitment to “co-finance” gradual increase of salaries of employees of the state-funded entities in breakaway South Ossetia to the level existing in Russia’s North Caucasus Federal District.
Russia also pledges to increase pensions for those residents of the breakaway region, which hold Russian passports, starting from 2016, according to the treaty, which also entails further easing of granting Russian citizenship to the residents of the breakaway region.