RAILWAY TRAIN WITH GRTT EQT LEAVES TBILISI FOR ARMENIA

ITAR-TASS, Russia
Nov 16 2006

TBILISI, November 16 (Itar-Tass) – An ahead-of-schedule removal of
the equipment and hardware of the Tbilisi garrison of the Group of
Russian Troops in the Transcaucasus (GRTT) began Thursday, an officer
at the GRTT headquarters here has told Itar-Tass.

The officer said, "The first railway train with hardware and equipment
is heading for Armenia, to the Russian military base at Gyumri".

Another train will go to Russia via Azerbaijan in one week’s time, on
November 23. Before the year is out, two more trainloads of hardware
and equipment of the Tbilisi garrison of the GRTT will be removed,
one to Armenia and the other one to Russia.

The timetable for the pullout of the Tbilisi garrison of the GRTT has
been fixed with the Georgian side, which, in line with the existing
accords, ensures the safety of the removal of the garrison’s hardware
and servicemen.

"A small group of GRTT staff officers will be set up to stay on in
Georgia next year as well, at the Russian military bases at Akhalkalaki
and Batumi, to finalize the bases’ removal process," the officer said.

The earlier-than-planned pullout of the Tbilisi garrison of the GRTT,
which is being carried out by a decision of the Russian Ministry of
Defence, is to be completed before the end of this year.

In all, 100 hardware units, 350 tonnes of equipment and ammunition,
as well as 387 servicemen will be relocated.

In keeping with the Georgian-Russian accords, the Akhalkalaki base
will be closed down before October 1, 2007, and the one at Batumi
will be wound up before October 1, 2008.