MOSCOW. July 21 (Interfax-AVN) - Major General Svyatoslav Nabzdorov, commander of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces in the Georgian-South Ossetian conflict zone, said armored vehicles that were delivered to replaced the Russian peacekeeping contingent's old military hardware are now being deployed in the region.
"The old military hardware will be withdrawn from the conflict zone on Friday," Nabzdorov told Interfax-Military News Agency by phone on Wednesday.
"No protests against the replacement of the Russian peacekeepers' armored vehicles have been received from Georgia so far. I am ready to meet with Georgian representatives and prove that no violations have been committed in connection with the hardware replacement," he said.
Later on Wednesday Tskhinvali will host a session of the Joint Control Commission's envoys.
"We have plenty to discuss as it is planned to start joint patrols of the conflict zone tomorrow to search for any armed groups whose presence there is not authorized," Nabzdorov said.
Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Vyacheslav Sedov told Interfax earlier on Wednesday that 22 infantry fighting vehicles and 18 armored personnel carriers had been delivered to the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone to replace the Russian peacekeepers' old hardware.