TBILISI. March 25 (Interfax-AVN) - The Georgian administration will strictly abide by the UN Security Council's resolution of January 31, 2002, in the Abkhaz settlement, President Eduard Shevardnadze told Radio Georgia on Monday.
"The claims that Tbilisi is allegedly preparing to restore the country's territorial integrity by force with the military support of the United States are rumors and gossip which have no real foundation," the president said.
Shevardnadze said once again that the Georgian leadership stuck to the peaceful settlement of the Abkhaz and Ossetian conflicts. "Recommencement of war is not the best way to solve the problems," he stressed.
At the same time, the president noted that "Georgia must have and will have a strong army, to which the United States provides substantial assistance at the moment." The army is not being trained for wars in Abkhazia or South Ossetia, instead, it "will accomplish the mission of maintaining stability and security in Georgia," he said.
"Developing Georgian-American cooperation in the military sphere is not aimed against interests of any other nation and not prejudicial to Russia's interests," Shevardnadze stressed.