Herbert Salber, EU Special Representative (EUSR) for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia, who also serves as a co-chair of the Geneva International Discussions, will leave his post in mid-August and return to the German Foreign Office.

“We can confirm that Ambassador Herbert Salber will be leaving the position of EUSR for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia in which he has been serving since July 2014,” the Office of the Special Representative told Civil.ge on July 11.

The Office also said that the Ambassador “informed the participants in the Geneva International Discussions about his decision during the last round held on June 20-21;” “all other counterparts in the region” were also notified about the decision.

According to the Office of the Special Representative, Ambassador Salber “will be carrying out his duties as EUSR until mid-August and will then return to the German Foreign Office.” “A successor should be appointed in the near future,” the Office added.

The information on Ambassador Salber’s possible resignation was first announced by Georgia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Davit Dondua, who noted in his July 5 comment for the Rustavi 2 TV that the EU Special Representative informed Geneva talks participants of his decision to leave the post for the position of a German ambassador.

The announcement comes less than two months after Ambassador Salber’s remarks in Tskhinvali, congratulating the region’s new leader Anatoly Bibilov on his victory in the April presidential polls, were met with furious criticism from Georgian officials and opposition politicians. 

The EU Special Representative’s task is to contribute to a peaceful settlement of conflicts in the region, including the crisis in Georgia and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The EUSR represents the EU in the Geneva International Discussions, aimed at resolving the aftermath of 2008 war with Russia.