TBILISI. Aug 13 (Interfax-AVN) - The Speaker of the Georgian parliament, Nino Burjanadze, has accused the South Ossetian authorities of blocking her access to Georgian-populated villages via Tskhinvali on Friday afternoon.
Speaking to journalists near a Georgian police outpost in the village of Tkviavi in the conflict zone, Burjanadze said, "I was categorically denied the chance of not only meeting with the separatist leadership but also passing to Georgian villages through Tskhinvali."
Burjanadze said she officially asked the Russian ambassador to Georgia that security of her movement in the Tskhivali region be provided by the Russian peacekeeping forces, "but this was not done."
"In fact, there is no opportunity now to get to the Georgian villages by the bypass road either, because shooting is still continuing there," she said.
"Apparently, the de facto Tskhinvali authorities see the only way of their salvation in exacerbating the situation and involving Georgia in an armed conflict," Burjanadze said.