Tbilisi Denies Sending Extra Troops to South Ossetia

According to the Russian and South Ossetian sides, the Georgian Defense Ministry deployed a 250-strong unit to the Georgian village of Eredvi, east of the breakaway South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali on February 8. But Tbilisi has strongly denied the report as “misinformation.”

“250 servicemen from the Georgian Defense Ministry was deployed in the village of Eredvi, which is in the security zone, on Wednesday evening. This is a violation of a 1992 [ceasefire] agreement,” Viacheslav Sedov, spokesman for Russian Defense Ministry, was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying.

“Up to 250 Georgian servicemen were brought to the village of Eredvi by 10 KAMAZ-type trucks,” Irina Gagloeva, the breakaway South Ossetian government’s spokesperson, was quoted by RIA Novosti news agency as saying.

But Georgian State Minister for Conflict Resolution Issues Giorgi Khaindrava denied these reports.

“This is misinformation. No Georgian forces have been dispatched there,” Khaindrava told RIA Novosti. Khaindrava added that his representatives visited the village and found no Georgian servicemen there.