GORI, Georgia, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- Russian troops and
armored vehicles began to pull out from the Georgian city of Gori Monday
afternoon under the terms of a French-brokered peace plan.
Russian troops and armored vehicles pull
out from the city of Gori, Georgia, Aug. 18, 2008. (Xinhua/Shen
Bohan) Photo
Gallery>>>
Russian forces were earlier reported to have begun to
withdraw from Tskhinvali, capital of Georgia's breakaway region of South
Ossetia, toward the Russian region of North Ossetia.
A senior Russian military officer confirmed the
withdrawal.
"Today, in line with the peace plan, we have begun
the withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers and their reinforcements," Col.Gen.
Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy head of Russia's General Staff, said at a press
conference broadcast live on Russian television.
After receiving the order for withdrawal, "we have
started to load (military equipment) and are preparing to move," a senior
Russian officer in the Georgia-South Ossetia conflict zone was quoted by the RIA
Novosti news agency as saying.
Russia declared a halt to its military offensive in
Georgia on Tuesday after days of conflict in South Ossetia.
President Dmitry Medvedev on Saturday signed the
peace plan, under which Georgian troops should return to their bases and Russian
forces should pull back to its previous positions.
The document also bans the use of force and any
military action and envisages free access to humanitarian aid.
According to Russian figures, around 1,600 civilians
died in South Ossetia and over 34,000 fled the region during the hostilities,
mostly to neighboring North Ossetia.
Georgia's President Mikheil Saakashvili
speaks during a news briefing in Tbilisi after talks with U.S. Secretary
of State Condoleezza Rice Aug. 15, 2008. (Xinhua/Reuters
Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
TBILISI, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- Georgian President Mikhail
Saakashvili said on Friday that he has signed the peace plan to settle the
conflict between his country and its breakaway region of South Ossetia.
Saakashvili made the statement at a press conference after
talks with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Full story
MOSCOW, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev said Friday his country expects Georgia to give its written consent to
the principles for settling the conflict between Georgia and its breakaway
region of South Ossetia, the Interfax news agency reported.
"Now these principles should be accepted by Georgia
and need to be followed, with guarantees from Russia, the Council of Europe, and
the OSCE (the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe). I hope this
will happen in the near future. We expect relevant information," Medvedev was
quoted by Interfax as saying. Full story
MOSCOW, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- A senior Russian general
said Thursday that Russia questioned cargoes airlifted by the United States to
Georgia were really humanitarian aid, Russian news agencies reported.
"U.S. military transport aircraft are reported to
have been airlifting some humanitarian cargoes to Tbilisi airport," Col.
Gen.Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy head of Russia's General Staff, was quoted by the
RIA Novosti news agency as saying at a press conference. Full story
MOSCOW, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev said Thursday that Moscow will support any decision made by Georgia's
breakaway regions South Ossetia and Abkhazia on their status.
"The position of the Russian Federation is unchanged.
We shall support any decision the people of South Ossetia and Abkhazia will make
in conformity with the United Nations Charter, the international convention of
1966, and the Helsinki act on security and cooperation in Europe," Medvedev was
quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as saying. Full story
MOSCOW, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- Russian Foreign Minister
Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday slammed the statement made by U.S. President George
W. Bush on the conflict between Russia and Georgia, saying facts mentioned in
the speech are untrue, Russian news agencies reported.
"I listened to George Bush's statement -- and was
surprised -- the facts he cited are untrue," Lavrov was quoted by the RIA
Novosti news agency as saying. He flatly denied the claims of the U.S. president
that Russian troops had blocked Georgia's Black Seaport of Poti. Full story
TBILISI, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- Georgia's parliament voted
Thursday to withdraw from three agreements concerning its membership of the
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), news reports reaching here from Russia
said.
The resolution, unanimously supported by all the
deputies at the emergency session, means that Georgia is quitting the CIS,
according to the source. Full story
KIEV, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- Ukrainian President Viktor
Yushchenko and his U.S. counterpart George W. Bush talked over phone on Thursday
to discuss situations in Georgia, the Ukrainian presidential office said in a
statement.
"The talk focuses on Georgian situations, and
measures that need to be taken to halt the conflict," said the statement.
Full story
BRUSSELS, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) is
ready to send observers to Georgia as announced after an emergency meeting of
the foreign ministers here on Wednesday, despite failure to forge a united
stance on how to respond to Russia's military action in South Ossetia. Full story
WASHINGTON, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President George W.
Bush said Wednesday that he is sending Secretary of State Rice to France and
Georgia to discuss efforts to halt the conflicts between Georgia and Russia.
In a brief statement in the White House, Bush also
demanded Russian troops now in Georgia must withdraw and said he is concerned
that Russia might not have halted military operations in Georgia. Full story
