Kavkaz

Russia’s president has said its forces will begin pulling out of Georgia from Monday afternoon, local time. Dmitri Medvedev made that promise in a phone call with his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy, whose country currently holds the presidency of the European Union. Sarkozy said that if Russia failed to withdraw …

In the latest round of shuttle diplomacy on the crisis in the Caucasus, German Chancellor Angela Merkel travelled to Tbilisi. After talks with Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, she said the Russians were not withdrawing from his country as quickly as hoped. The German leader, who met President Medvedev on Friday, …

While a partial pullout of Russian forces may be underway in Georgia, there was still plenty of military activity to keep observers busy. Georgia has accused the Russians of setting forest fires near Tbilisi, digging into positions near the capital, and occupying key villages and a power station.

US President George W. Bush believes progress is being made in resolving the Georgia crisis. But, speaking at his ranch in Texas, he said that South Ossetia and Abkhazia are a part of Georgia and “there’s no room for debate on this matter.”

SOCHI/TBILISI (Reuters) – Russia signed a peace deal to end the conflict in Georgia on Saturday but said “extra security measures” were needed before a withdrawal could begin. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, working from the Black Sea resort of Sochi, added his signature to a French-led peace plan already endorsed …

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev has signed the ceasefire agreement faxed to him by US diplomats, formally ending hostilities with Georgia. Georgia’s President Mikheil Saakashvili put pen to paper yesterday on the deal, which had already been signed by separatist leaders in the breakaway Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

The occupation of Georgian territory and the methods used have brought some of the fiercest words from the USA in two decades. In an apparent violation of the ceasefire deal the Russian army is extending the zone it controls, and while US foreign minister Condoleezza Rice has recieved faithful assurances …

Russian tanks remain parked deep inside Georgia this morning, and there are reports of two more towns being brought under military control. An armoured column has been seen just 45 kilometres from the capital, shadowed by three helicopter gunships. Other Russian forces are on the move in Georgia well outside …

Five days of heavy fighting have left Tskhinvali, south Osettia, in ruins, but now at least refugees are returning. They find a cleanup struggling to make a difference, with few services and no utilities.

As international tension rises, parades marking Army Day in Poland have been held against a backdrop of Russian rage. Moscow is furious that Warsaw has agreed to host elements of a US global anti-missile system. By doing so, a senior Russian general was quoted as saying that Poland was making …