Kavkaz

KARALETI, Georgia (Reuters) – Russian troops started pulling back from buffer zones outside South Ossetia on Wednesday, two months after Russia’s brief war with Georgia which increased tension with the West.

The city of Evian is on the border between France and Switzerland. Security there has been tightened for the inaugural three-day meeting of the World Policy Conference which began on Monday.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called on Russia to refrain from providing Iran and Syria with advanced missiles and weapons technology, and vowed to raise the issue during a visit to Moscow starting on Monday.

TBILISI (Reuters) – EU ceasefire monitors in Georgia reported the dismantling of a Russian checkpoint near breakaway South Ossetia on Sunday, saying it was the “first open sign” of a promised Russian troop pullback by October 10.

ASTANA (Reuters) – The United States is not trying to poach Russia’s allies in Central Asia, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Sunday during a visit to oil-rich Kazakhstan.

Russia’s navy is gearing up to pass through the straits of Gibraltar.The four warships – including the nuclear-powered Russian heavy cruiser Peter the Great – will stop off in Libya before heading to Venezuela.

A number of people have been killed in a car explosion near a Russian base in Georgia’s breakaway region of South Ossetia. Initial information about the blast in the regional capital of Tskhinvali came from a South Ossetian news agency.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Tehran hopes that Azerbaijan and Armenia will express their opinion soon about Iran’s proposals on mediation in the resolution of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, a senior Iranian diplomat said.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Kamov, one of Russia’s largest helicopter producers, is hoping to sign an agreement by the end of the year to export Ka-226T utility helicopters to Iran, the company’s director said on Friday.

Russia has spared Ukraine from a steep price rise in gas for the time being despite a row over arms sales to Georgia.