TBILISI. April 9 (Interfax-AVN) - A slight escalation of the tensions in the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict zone is not a reason to increase the number of servicemen in the CIS Collective Peacekeeping Forces in the region, Lieutenant General Valery Yevnevich, Land Forces deputy commander in charge of peacekeeping troops, said here on Tuesday after meeting with Georgian Emergencies Minister Malkhaz Kakabadze.
According to Yevnevich, "almost 2,000 peacekeepers located in the conflict zone are enough to accomplish assigned missions."
Commenting on the increasing number of attacks on Russian peacekeepers Yevnevich said that Russian authorities did not blame Georgia for those incidents. "Armed groups and formations reporting to no one are operating in the region and their neutralization must be a common concern for the peacekeepers, Georgian and Abkhaz authorities. The Georgian leadership is desperately looking for ways to solve the problem of uncontrolled armed groups that are trying to disrupt the peaceful process of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict settlement," Yevnevich said.
Yevnevich will leave for South Ossetia on Tuesday evening to study the conditions of Russian peacekeepers' service in the region. Two days later, he is expected to travel to Sukhumi and then return to Tbilisi to negotiate with Georgian Defense Minister David Tevzadze.