Russia recalled its ambassador from Georgia Thursday and
announced the evacuation of Russian personnel and their families
from the country, the Foreign Ministry said.
The Russian move follows the detention of five Russian officers
on spying charges in Georgia, which further escalated tensions in
bilateral relations strained over Georgia's bid to join NATO and
Moscow's close ties to two separatist Georgian provinces.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov called the charges
against the officers absurd and demanded their immediate
release.
"I won't be surprised if today the Georgian side files charges
against them of wanting to steal the sun from the sky," Ivanov
quipped on Russian television.
"All of this is aimed at provoking the situation and raising the
degree of escalation to the maximum level in order to deflect
attention from problems that exist in Georgia," Ivanov said.
"Russia will react appropriately and responsibly."
Relations between Moscow and have become increasingly tense
after President Mikhail Saakashvili came to power following
Georgia's 2003 Rose Revolution, pledging to take the Caucasus
nation out of Russia's orbit.
Georgian officials have also accused Russia of backing
separatists in Georgia's breakaway provinces of Abkhazia and South
Ossetia and making efforts to undermine Saakashvili's government
allegations Russia has denied.
A Georgian political analyst, Ramaz Sakvarelidze, said the
detentions could reflect Saakashvili's frustration at being unable
to fulfill his promise of regaining control of the renegade
provinces.
Georgian Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili said on Wednesday
four Russian military intelligence officers were detained in the
Georgian capital and the Black Sea port of Batumi on charges of
espionage. A fifth officer was detained later that day, the
ministry said in a statement.
Russia maintains two military bases in Georgia as Soviet-era
holdovers. One is to be closed in 2007 and the other a year
later.
Merabishvili said a dozen Georgian citizens who were part of the
same "very dangerous" spy chain were also detained.
He said the ring was led by a Russian agent who allegedly staged
a February 2005 mine explosion that killed three police officers in
the town of Gori.
Merabishvili said the suspects had been involved in espionage
for several years. Georgian authorities moved to detain the
suspects to thwart a "serious provocation" they had prepared,
Merabishvili said on Wednesday.
He added that they showed interest in the country's defence
capabilities, its plans to join NATO, energy security, political
groupings and information about Georgia's military.
(China Daily September 29, 2006)
