TBILISI, December 22 (AVN) - Georgia is likely to set up several new checkpoints on the roads leading to its Pankisi Gorge, which borders Chechhya from the south, in the next few days, Major-General Georgy Shervashidze, commander of the Georgian Interior Ministry troops, said on Friday.
The decision is not motivated by growing tensions in the area, Chechen refugee attempts to destabilise the situation or arrival of Chechen guerrilla gangs, Shervashidze told the Military News Agency. Additional checkpoints are necessary to work more effectively against illegal movement on motorways, he said.
According to Shervashidze, Georgia is not planning to deploy military equipment in the gorge.
The Georgian Interior Ministry troops currently have six checkpoints in the area.