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Russia to increase peacekeeping force in S. Ossetia

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-08-24 00:00

MOSCOW - Russia will increase its peacekeeping troops in Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia, a senior officer said on Saturday.

"Our peacekeeping troops in South Ossetia are currently acting under the 1992 bilateral agreements, according to which 500 of Russian peacekeepers will be deployed there," said Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy chief of staff of the Russian armed forces.

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"However, because of the tense situation in the region, we cannot do without building up the peacekeeping contingent to prevent acts of sabotage and provide security to the population," Nogovitsyn told a press conference.

Russia accused Georgia of violating the bilateral agreements by launching attacks against South Ossetia on August 7 in an attempt to regain control of the region, which borders Russia.

In retaliation, Moscow sent in troops that drove Georgian forces out of the region and took over parts of Georgian territory.

Moscow withdrew its troops from Georgia on Friday as promised in a France-brokered ceasefire agreement but intensified its peacekeeping force there.

The future composition of the Russian peacekeeping contingent will be determined by follow-up talks slated in the ceasefire deal, Nogovitsyn noted.

South Ossetia, an autonomous region within Georgia, declared independence from the former Soviet republic in the early 1990s. However, its independence has not been internationally recognized.

Peacekeeping forces from Russia, Georgia and South Ossetia were deployed there after conflicts between the self-proclaimed Caucasus republic and Georgia in the early 1990s.