TBILISI. Jan 28 (Interfax-AVN) - Georgian Defense Minister David Tevzadze has said he is not going to withdraw troops from the Kodori Gorge.
Without reliable guarantees of the non-resumption of combat actions in the Kodori Gorge and security for the local population, "the troops stationed there will not move," Tevzadze said at a joint news briefing with members of a Turkish General Staff delegation on Monday.
Head of the Turkish military delegation and Chief of the Logistics Service of the Turkish General Staff Colonel General Zafer Ozkan noted that speculations about the possibility of sending a Turkish peacekeeping contingent to Abkhazia "are so far very preliminary."
The Turkish delegation arrived in Tbilisi on January 26 to negotiate on provision of more assistance to the Georgian army development.
According to Ozkan, the Turkish government has provided almost USD15m worth of assistance to the Georgian Armed Forces over the past few years and will continue to do so. He said he was hoping that the Georgian army would meet NATO standards in the near future.