United Nations Radio

The first session of the international discussions on Georgia wrapped up in Geneva Wednesday with a decision to hold the next meeting on 18 November.

In a press conference after the session, the Secretary-General's special envoy for Georgia, Johan Verbeke, said one should not dramatize the "procedural incident" that happened.

He said all participants were present, expressed their views, and acted in a responsible way.

"This was clearly on behalf of all of them a process in which they engaged and were willing to engage. What happened is ...a procedural incident which had to be resolved. We thought more than do a quick fix which may leave us with other problems later in the day or later in the process we better address them."

Verbeke said it has been decided to create some "breathing space" to address the few outstanding procedural points.

He said the current suspension of work was only temporary.

Meanwhile, the International Court of Justice has ordered Russia and Georgia to refrain from racial discrimination against individuals or groups in South Ossetia, Abkhazia and adjacent areas.

This is Donn Bobb reporting for United Nations Radio.

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