RUSSIA COMPLETES WITHDRAWAL FROM 1 OF 2 REMAINING BASES IN GEORGIA

The Associated Press
International Herald Tribune, France
June 27 2007

TBILISI, Georgia: Russia completed its withdrawal from one of two
remaining military bases in the ex-Soviet republic of Georgia on
Wednesday, a long-promised move that Georgia’s president has pressed
for years.

At a ceremony attended by First Deputy Defense Minister Levan
Nikoleishvili, Maj. Gen. Andrei Popov, the Russian commander for the
Caucasus, signed the documents turning over the Akhalkalaki base to
Georgian control, Defense Ministry spokeswoman Nana Intskirveli said.

At one point, the base in the southern Georgia, which has been under
Russian control for nearly 100 years, hosted some 15,000 military
personnel.

Russian officials plans to pull out their last military personnel
from their base in the Black Sea port of Batumi by late next year. On
Wednesday, a railroad convoy of tanks, armored personnel carriers and
other materiel left the Batumi base en route to another Russian base
in neighboring Armenia.

Georgia and Russia agreed in 2005, after months of contentious
negotiations, that Russian forces would pull out of the two bases.

The move was considered a key victory for Georgia President Mikhail
Saakashvili.

Relations between the two countries have been strained in recent
years. Georgia has long accused Russia of supporting separatists
while Russia fears Georgia is moving closer to the West.

Georgian authorities in September briefly detained four Russian
military officers on spying charges and Moscow retaliated with a
transport and postal blockade and a crackdown on Georgian migrants
in Russia.