ITAR-TASS News Agency, Russia
September 1, 2006 Friday 06:48 AM EST

Russia govt approves accords on military base pullout from Georgia

by Natalia Slavina

MOSCOW, September 1

The Russian government has decided to submit Russian-Georgian accords
on the withdrawal of Russia’s military bases from Georgia to the
president for sending them to parliament’s lower house for the
ratification.

The government’s press service told ITAR-TASS on Friday that the
accords had been approved at a government meeting.

One of them sets the ‘time and procedure of the temporary presence
and withdrawal of Russian military bases and other military
facilities of Trans-Caucuses group of Russian troops from Georgia”.

It stipulates the stay of the bases until December 31, 2008, which is
the time limit of the accord.

Russia’s federal budget slates for the pullout process 836 million
roubles in 2006, 820 million in 2007 and 510 million roubles in 2008.

Other expenditures on the military bases and other facilities in
Georgia are to be covered by budget allocations to the Russian armed
forces.

Another accord, on the transit of military cargoes and personnel
through the territory of Georgia, is aimed at law regulation of
transit problems “for ensuring the functioning of the Russian
military base located on the territory of Armenia”.

The transit will be financed from budget allocations to the Russian
army.

The two documents were signed in Sochi on March 31.