Russian troops to move out

The country agrees to remove its troops from neighbouring Georgia pending the deployment of EU monitors.

Dmitry Medvedev, left, met with Nicolas Sarkosy, centre, and Jose Manuel Barroso, right, to discuss the presence of Russian troops in Georgia.

MOSCOW // Russia agreed yesterday to remove its troops from neighbouring Georgia pending the deployment of EU monitors in the so-called buffer zones separating Georgia from its breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Following four-hour talks with Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, Dmitry Medvedev, Russia's president, said Russian forces would leave the buffer zones in Georgia proper within 10 days after "no less than 200 observers from the European Union" are deployed "not later than October 1". The announcement, following the talks at Mr Medvedev's residence outside Moscow, addressed the main point of contention in Russia's adherence to a peace plan brokered by Mr Sarkozy last month that brought an end to the bloody five-day conflict between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia. Under the six-point plan, both Georgia and Russia are obligated to return their forces to the positions they held before the Georgian military attempted to retake South Ossetia on Aug 8. After crushing the Georgian operation, Russian forces proceeded to move into Georgia proper and set up buffer zones the Kremlin has claimed are necessary to prevent further violence. The Kremlin has justified leaving its troops in the buffer zone by citing a provision in the peace deal allowing Russia to employ "additional security measures". Georgia has accused Russia of failing to observe the treaty it signed, issuing a statement on Sunday accusing Russian forces of further digging in outside Georgia's port city of Poti on the Black Sea. Mr Medvedev said Russian troops would leave their positions outside Poti within the next seven days if Georgia promised not to use force against Abkhazia. The stipulation came a day after Mikheil Saakashvili, the Georgian president, said in a televised address that Georgia's "territorial integrity will be restored". Mr Sarkozy was to fly to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi later yesterday to meet with Mr Saakashvili about the results of his talks with Mr Medvedev. In comments before the meeting, Mr Sarkozy, who was accompanied on his trip by the president of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, and Javier Solana, the EU's foreign policy chief, told his Russian counterpart that the 27 EU members were "united" in their position on the Russian-Georgian conflict. "They want peace, they want confidence, they want good neighbourly relations," Mr Sarkozy told reporters. "And in the same way as our Russian friends, they want to defend our convictions. The European Union also has its principles and convictions." Following the talks, the French president conceded that "not everything could be resolved in four hours" but that "what was accomplished today, it was rather significant". He said: "The retreat of Russian forces. Accepted. The acceptance of European observers. Accepted." While the EU, which is heavily dependent on Russia for gas supplies, has heavily criticised Russia's actions in the conflict, its sole threat has been to suspend talks on an EU-Russia partnership agreement. Mr Sarkozy said yesterday, however, that should Russia withdraw its troops from Georgia proper, the EU would not postpone the negotiations on the partnership accord. "The document that we signed today, if it is implemented, I see no reason why the meetings between Russia and Europe, which were postponed, would not resume in October," Mr Sarkozy said, Interfax reported. Mr Medvedev made it clear that Russia would not revisit its decision to recognise the South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states. "This is a reality with which all our partners, including our EU partners, will have to reckon with," he said. So far Nicaragua is the only other country to recognise the independence of the republics. Alexander Lukashenko, the Belarusian president, who has openly supported Moscow's military operation against Georgia and was seen by many analysts as someone the Kremlin could count on to recognise the regions, said yesterday that "a time will come when we will examine this issue in Belarus just as Russia examined it - in parliament," Reuters said. Addressing a meeting of Russian regional governors on Saturday, Mr Medvedev ridiculed western governments for their criticism of Russia's actions. "Millions of people supported us, but we have heard no words of support and understanding from those who, under the same circumstances, pontificate about free elections and national dignity and the need to use force to punish an aggressor," Mr Medvedev said. Mr Medvedev's overall tone has become increasingly severe in recent weeks, echoing the tough talk that was the hallmark of Vladimir Putin, the former Russian president and now the powerful prime minister. Mr Medvedev continued in that vein yesterday, accusing Mr Saakashvili of receiving "direct orders, or silent approval" from Washington to launch Georgia's military action, which he described as an "idiotic action". Mr Sarkozy's visit yesterday came on the first day of hearings in the International Court of Justice of Georgia's accusations that Russia carried out "a campaign of harassment and persecution" against ethnic Georgians in the two regions. But Roman Kolodkin, Russia's lead lawyer in the case, told the judges yesterday the court "manifestly has no jurisdiction" and said Georgia had no proof supporting its accusations that Georgians were ethnically cleansed, The Associated Press reported. [e-mail]