UN rebuke for Georgia

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has criticised Georgia in a rare public rebuke, vehemently denying a claim by its UN ambassador that he amended a report in response to “Russian blackmail”.

Envoy Alexander Lomaia had claimed Russia threatened to veto an upcoming Security Council resolution on revamping the UN mission in Georgia’s breakaway region of Abkhazia unless the title and content of Mr Ban’s report to the council were changed.

Russia’s UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin called the allegation “untrue” and irresponsible.