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Russian envoy to continue military, political talks in Tbilisi

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  • Russian envoy to continue military, political talks in Tbilisi

    ITAR-TASS News Agency
    TASS
    June 9, 2005 Thursday 5:15 PM Eastern Time

    Russian envoy to continue military, political talks in Tbilisi

    By Yelena Pankratieva

    MOSCOW


    The Russian Foreign Ministry's special envoy, Igor Savolsky is
    arriving in Tbilisi on Friday to join the expert-level talks that
    began in the Georgian capital on Wednesday.

    The negotiators are discussing military and political themes and the
    withdrawal of Russian military bases.

    Taking part in the negotiations are Russian special envoy Lev Mironov
    and his Georgian counterpart Malkhaz Mikeladze.

    The implementation of agreements the two countries' foreign ministers
    achieved and put on record in a joint statement on May 30 is high on
    the agenda.

    Lev Mironov has said the experts' meeting has been successful.

    He told reporters he was pleased with the progress in the talks.

    "I believe so are the Georgian counterparts," he said.

    Russia and Georgia have negotiated the withdrawal of bases since
    2001, the Itar-Tass correspondent in Tbilisi Tengiz Pachkoria
    reports. Moscow initially suggested a 14-year period of withdrawal,
    then eleven years, and then eight years. Tbilisi at first argued it
    wanted the bases out in 3-4 years, and then in 2-3 years.

    The Georgian parliament on March 10 adopted a resolution saying that
    if agreement were not achieved by May 15, Russia would be told to
    withdraw the bases by January 1, 2006. The Russian and Georgian
    foreign ministers came to terms at negotiations in Moscow on May 30.

    Most Russian armaments from the Georgian bases will be pulled out
    into Russia, and some redeployed to the Russian base in Gyumri, in
    neighboring Armenia. At first the decision drew protests from
    Azerbaijan, but the country's Prime Minister Artur Rasi-Zade on June
    3 said Baku would not regard this as something tragic.
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