Russian Troops Headquarters in Tbilisi Pulled Out

Russia completed pulling out of the Headquarters of the Group of Russian Troops in the Tran Caucasus (GRVZ) on December 23.

The building housing the GRVZ in downtown Tbilisi was transferred to Georgia after a relevant agreement was signed in Tbilisi between the Georgian and Russian sides on December 23.

There will not be a single Russian serviceman in Tbilisi starting from December 25, GRVZ commander Andrey Popov said.

He said that 15 officers from the Tbilisi Headquarters will now be deployed in the Russian military base in Batumi to organize the withdrawal process of Russia?s two military bases from Georgia.

?This is a historic day for us and an important victory for Georgia,? Levan Nikoleishvili, the Georgian Deputy Defense Minister, said.

The withdrawal of Russian troops from Tbilisi was carried out ahead of schedule. According to the Russian-Georgian agreement, the Group of Russian Troops in the Tran Caucasus should have left Georgian territory in the course of 2008.

There were total of 387 Russian servicemen and 484 civilians serving in the Headquarters in Tbilisi.

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