MOSCOW, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Russia has kept moving
troops out of Georgia and strived to fulfill its promise in a cease-fire
agreement of withdrawing its forces from the Caucasus neighbor after several
days of military conflicts.
RUSSIA WITHDRAWS
TROOPS
All the troops will pull back to Russia's territory
in ten days, Russian General Vladimir Boldyrev, the Chief Commander of Ground
Troops said Thursday.
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Russian troops and armored vehicles pull
out from the city of Gori, Georgia, Aug. 18, 2008. (Xinhua/Shen
Bohan)
Photo
Gallery>>> |
Peacekeepers' posts would open on Friday and Russian
troops that are not involved in peacekeeping operations would return to Russia,
Boldyrev said.
Georgia launched attacks in its breakaway region of
South Ossetia on Aug. 8 in an attempt to regain control of the region that
borders Russia.
Tbilisi's move triggered prompt reaction from Moscow,
whose troops drove Georgian forces out of the region and took parts of Georgian
territory.
Russia has promised to withdraw its troops, except
peacekeeping forces, on Friday in a French-brokered cease-fire deal but the West
has accused Moscow of moving slowly.
MOSCOW-WEST TIES
SOURED
Military cooperation between Russia and NATO, whose
membership is being pursued by Georgia, have been frozen after the conflict.
Russian-U.S. relations were also deteriorating due to
the Russian-Georgian conflicts and a U.S.-Poland agreement of deploying
anti-ballistic missile components in Poland, a move Moscow regarded as a threat
to its national security.
Georgia and the United States will continue defense
cooperation, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said on Thursday.
Georgia, jointly with Pentagon and NATO
representatives, is discussing concrete issues in order to strengthen the
country's defense capacity, said the president.
Washington is to help Georgia rebuild its military
following the conflict with Russia over South Ossetia, said Supreme Allied
Commander Europe General John Craddock, also NATO's top operational commander
who is visiting Tbilisi.
SHOWCASE OF
FLEXIBILITY
There are, however, a showcase of flexibility amid
the rows.
"We are not in the mood of slamming the door shut,"
said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
"Russia needs bilateral cooperation to a no greater
degree than NATO. I believe that our NATO partners need support from Russia,
including that for its operation in Afghanistan, and to a far bigger extent,"
Russian media quoted the top diplomat as saying.
The Russia-led Collective Security Treaty
Organization also said on Thursday that it's still open to cooperation with NATO
"as any contacts with that organization would help solve a series of major
problems."
But on the same day, mass rallies were held in South
Ossetia and Georgia's another breakaway region of Abkhazia, urging Russia to
recognize the self-proclaimed republics as independent states.
Abkhazia and South Ossetia broke away from Georgia's
central rule in the 1990s following the collapse of the former Soviet Union. But
their self-proclaimed independence is not internationally
recognized.
NATO: Russia is halting military
co-op
BRUSSELS, Aug. 21
(Xinhua) -- NATO said on Thursday it had been informed by Russia of its decision
to halt international military cooperation with NATO member states until further
notice, a spokeswoman of the military alliance said.
Russia's move came after the 26-member military bloc
warned on Tuesday of a chill in relations with Russian unless Moscow immediately
withdrew from occupied positions in South Ossetia, a breakaway autonomous
republic of Georgia. Full story
Russia warns NATO
against re-equipping Georgia's military
BRUSSELS, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) --
Russia's ambassador to NATO Dmitry Rogozin warned Wednesday NATO against filling
the gap of losses of the Georgian military incurred in its conflict with Russia.
"Any attempt of NATO to fill the gap of losses of the
Georgian army contradicts the conventions of the OSCE (Organization of Security
and Cooperation in Europe)," Rogozin told reporters. Full story
Medvedev: Russian
troops to pull out from Georgia by Friday
MOSCOW, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) --
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Tuesday Moscow will withdraw its troops
from Georgia by Friday under the terms of a French-brokered peace plan, the
Kremlin said in a statement.
"Some of the peacekeepers will be pulled back to the
temporary security zone by Aug. 22," Medvedev told his French counterpart
Nicolas Sarkozy by phone. Full story
UNSC ends talks
on Georgia without agreement
UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) --
The UN Security Council concluded on late Tuesday afternoon its emergency
consultations on Georgia without reaching any agreement.
During the open meeting, UN political chief Lynn Pascoe
and UN Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Edmond Mulet
briefed the council on the latest developments in Georgia. Full story
Russia says its troops pulling out of
Georgia under peace plan
MOSCOW, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Russian troops have begun
pulling out of Georgia in line with the French-brokered six-point peace plan, a
senior Russian military official said Tuesday.
"We shall comply with all of the six items of the plan at
a pace the situation allows for," Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy chief of
the Russian General Staff, was quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as saying. Full story
