Kavkaz

PARIS (Reuters) – France has complained to Russia after soldiers stopped the French ambassador to Georgia at a roadblock on Thursday, the foreign ministry said.

OSLO (Reuters) – The United States warned Georgia against trying to retake rebel South Ossetia by force, including on the very eve of the August 7 attack that drew a crushing response from Russia, the U.S. envoy to NATO said on Thursday.

TBILISI (Reuters) – Leila Inauri laughed grimly at the irony of her situation. “The Russians have driven us from our homes and now we end up as refugees here in a building that used to be the base for Russian soldiers serving in the Caucasus. It is an irony of …

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian soldiers rode into battle against Georgia perched on top of their armored personnel carriers, not out of bravado but because a flaw in their armor can make it more dangerous to travel inside.

SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) – Russia intends to keep 500 troops in a security zone surrounding Georgia’s breakaway South Ossetia region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Oil rose to $116 a barrel on Thursday, climbing for a third straight session, as Washington’s missile shield deal with Poland angered Russia, adding to international tension.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Baku may export its oil via Iran after explosion and conflict disrupted its routes through Turkey and Georgia, An Azeri official said.

Russia is continuing to show no sign of yielding to Western pressure to hasten its withdrawal from Georgia. Germany, Russia’s largest trading partner, has become the latest major power to express impatience over the pace of the pull-out – which is turning into scepticism over Moscow’s intentions.

We will respond, and it won’t just be a diplomatic protest. That is the warning from Russia after the US and Poland signed an agreement on the controversial American missile defence shield.

Russia is under increasing Western pressure to meet its own Friday deadline to pull its troops out of Georgia. However, those on the ground say there is little evidence of any large-scale military withdrawal.