TBILISI. Aug 5 (Interfax-AVN) - Valery Chkheidze, commander of Georgia's border guard troops, said that federal forces in Chechnya have launched an operation to push rebels onto Georgian territory.
"Such conclusions may be made not only based on reports alleging that two groups of Chechen rebels freely passing Russian border check points over the past weekend, but also based on some operative information as well," Chkheidze told Interfax on Monday.
He said that in the near future, rebel groups of 15-30 people will be infiltrating to Georgia at different sections of the border with Russia.
Commenting on 15 Chechen rebels who were detained on the Russia-Georgia border over the past few days, he noted that one of them is a Georgian national.
The commander said that in order to reduce border tensions and ensure that actions are coordinated, he is prepared to meet with his Russian counterpart Konstantin Totsky in the near future.