Posted in the BBC website, Aug. 18, 2008
Russia is expected to begin withdrawing troops from Georgia,
following a pledge by President Dmitry Medvedev.
Mr Medvedev promised to abide by the terms of a ceasefire
brokered to end ten days of fighting in Georgia and its
breakaway province of South Ossetia.
But two hours after the withdrawal was due to begin there
was still no sign of any Russian troops leaving Georgia.
Moscow has said it has the right to keep some troops as
peacekeepers in a buffer zone around South Ossetia.
The West has repeatedly urged Russia to withdraw its troops,
and France said it would call a special EU summit if Russia
did not comply.
Moscow - which has had peacekeepers in South Ossetia since
1992 - says it will only withdraw combat troops from Georgian
territory once extra security measures are in place.
Russian tanks, artillery and other military vehicles are still
in place at Igueti, just over 35km (22 miles) from the capital,
Tbilisi, says the BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse, who is in the area.
There has been sporadic military activity along the highway to
Gori, our correspondent adds, pointing out that Russian forces
control the entry and exit roads to the town.
Monitoring call
Mr Medvedev made the withdrawal pledge on Sunday, in a telephone
call to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who brokered last
week's ceasefire.
But the Russian president did not clearly state that additional
troops sent to Georgia during the conflict would return to Russia,
suggesting some may retreat only as Russian troops are moving
around inside Georgia but are not yet withdrawing
Georgia's President Mikhail Saakashvili, who has taken a combative
stance to Russia's actions so far, adopted a more conciliatory
approach to Moscow's leadership in a televised speech on Monday.
"We demand the withdrawal of the [Russian] occupation forces without
delay," he said. "Let's then start thinking, negotiating how can we
prevent the definitive estrangement of our two countries."
Previously, Mr Saakashvili had launched repeated vehement verbal
attacks on Moscow, accusing Russia of a string of human rights
abuses inside Georgia, including "ethnic cleansing".
Monday's speech represented a departure from that and was the
first time he had called for direct negotiations with Moscow
since the crisis began.
"Let's resolve problems through civilised methods," he said.
Buffer zone
If and when the withdrawal begins, there are likely to be
many more discussions about the exact interpretation of the
rather vague ceasefire deal - especially over just how far into
Georgia Russian troops are allowed to remain, says the BBC's
Caroline Wyatt in Moscow.
A covering letter attached to the ceasefire apparently says
Russia can place peacekeepers in a buffer zone of a few kilometres
around the South Ossetian border, our correspondent says.
Moscow has already started to say it plans to enforce a 1999
peacekeeping accord on South Ossetia, which would allow it to
put Russian peacekeepers 14 kilometres into Georgia proper.
Mr Saakashvili has called for international monitoring of the pullout.
And US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she hoped Mr.
Medvedev would keep his word on the troop withdrawal pledge, warning
that Russia's reputation as a potential partner was "in tatters".
Mr Sarkozy said on Sunday there would be "serious consequences"
in Moscow's relations with the European Union if Russia failed to
honour its word.
And in a separate opinion article published by Le Figaro newspaper
on Monday, he said that if Russia did not "rapidly and totally"
implement the pull-out as specified in the ceasefire, he would
"call an extraordinary meeting of the council of the European Union".
"This pull-out must be carried out without delay," he wrote.
"In my mind, this point is not negotiable."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has travelled to the Georgian
capital, Tbilisi, to express support for Mr Saakashvili, and
urged a prompt Russian withdrawal.
As well as key towns such as Gori and Senaki, in the west,
Russian troops also hold almost all of the main highway running
east-west through Georgia.
There are reports of Russia moving SS-21 missile launchers
near to South Ossetia's capital, Tskhinvali, putting them within
range of Tbilisi.
The conflict between Georgia and Russia erupted on 7 August,
when Georgia launched an assault to retake South Ossetia, an enclave
within Georgia controlled by pro-Russian separatists. There had been
frequent exchanges of fire before the escalation.
Georgia's operation triggered Russia's counter-offensive. The heavy
fighting devastated towns and villages and forced nearly 160,000 people
to flee their homes, according to the UNHCR.
Nato ministers are expected to gather this week to discuss the crisis.
The US is backing efforts by both Georgia and Ukraine to join the alliance, and on Sunday Mrs Merkel offered her
support to Tbilisi's bid.
