Russia/Georgia

Georgia and Russia agree truce

Article published on the 2008-08-13 Latest update 2008-08-13 12:06 TU

Sarkozy and Saakashvili in Tibilisi
(Photo: Reuters)

Georgia and Russia have agreed to a French-brokered peace plan after Moscow ordered a halt to its military operations. The six-point plan is to be reviewed by EU foreign ministers on Wednesday, said French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Tbilisi. However, French mediators admit that difficulties lie ahead after Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili suggested some details were unacceptable.

"There is a text. It has been accepted in Moscow, it was accepted here in Georgia. I have the agreement of all the protagonists," French President Nicolas Sarkozy said at a news conference with Saakashvili.

The Georgian president insisted the deal does not compromise Georgian territorial integrity and a reference in the plan to negotiations on the "future status" of breakaway South Ossetia and Abkhazia was changed to a pledge to discuss how to ensure "security and stability" there.

Saakashvili has accused Russia, which ended its offensive into Georgian territory on Tuesday, of violating the ceasefire on Wednesday.

The leaders of some former Soviet states, including Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko and Polish President Lech Kaczynski, attended a rally in support of Georgia in Tbilisi.

Russian troops and tanks entered Georgia after the Georgian army launched an offensive to regain control of South Ossetia, the Moscow-backed region which broke away from Tbilisi in the early 1990s.

"I think that the Russians considered that they had achieved their main goals," French analyst Jacques Rupnik told RFI. "They re-established their influence over the two enclaves … and they have shown the Georgians that they could move all the way to Tbilisi if they wanted to."

Nato ambassadors meeting in Brussels condemned Moscow for "an excessive, disproportionate use of force," and reiterated their support for Georgia eventually joining the military alliance.