国际英语新闻：Russia, Georgia end 10th round of postwar talks

GENEVA, March 30 (Xinhua) -- Russia and Georgia concluded here on Tuesday their 10th round of internationally-mediated talks aimed at resolving security and humanitarian issues left over by their brief war in August 2008.

Parties at the one-day talks discussed security and stability issues as well as humanitarian matters in two working groups, according to a statement read out to reporters by EU special representative Pierre Morel.

Tensions continued to exist in the former conflict areas, and parties noted that "provocative actions and rhetorics were not helpful for the ongoing efforts to stabilize the situation on the ground and should therefore be avoided," Morel said.

Participants in the talks also highlighted the stabilizing role of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanisms established in February and promised to take concrete steps to ensure their full functioning, he added.

Currently the mechanisms are working normally in Abkhazia, but they have met problems in South Ossetia. The two breakaway regions of Georgia were recognized as independent states by Russia following the brief war in 2008.

The participants also discussed such issues as missing persons, the release of detainees, and the proposed non-use of force and international security arrangements, but no agreement was reached.

The talks were co-chaired by the European Union, the United Nations and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. They were participated by representatives from Russia, Georgia, the United States as well as Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Despite the lack of consensus on substantial issues, participants agreed that the Geneva discussions were at least good for confidence building. And they agreed to hold the next round on June 8, the co-chairs said.

The Geneva talks were initiated in October 2008 in compliance with agreements reached by Russia and the EU. The agreements were reached after the five-day war in August in which Russian soldiers defeated Georgian troops trying to regain control in South Ossetia.