MOSCOW, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- Georgian and Russian foreign ministers had
produced no breakthrough in Wednesday's talks but agreed to continue their
dialogue toward settling the disputes over their bilateral ties, the Georgian
Foreign Minister Gela Bezhuashvilidi said on Thursday.
Bezhuashvilidi and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov met in Moscow on
Wednesday in a bid to mend the relationship between the two neighbors that has
dipped to a new low since the Caucasus nation's brief detention of Russian
officers on spying charges in late September.
"I cannot describe these negotiations as a breakthrough. However, dialogue
has been launched and we agreed to continue it," Bezhuashvilidi was quoted by
the Interfax news agency as saying.
Moscow, infuriated by the arrests, has imposed an economic blockade on
Tbilisi by cutting transport and postal links, and has deported Georgians
accused of staying in Russia illegally.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement issued late Wednesday that
Lavrov and Bezhuashvili "discussed topical issues in Russian-Georgian relations
as well as the situation surroundingthe settlement of the Georgian-Abkhaz and
Georgian-Ossetian conflicts."
"The Russian side explained in detail once again on what conditions
Russian-Georgian relations could return to the normal path," the statement said.
Relations between Moscow and Tbilisi have been strained by tensions over
Georgia's breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and the country's bid
to join NATO since its President Mikheil Saakashvili came to power in 2003.