Saakashvili: Georgia Will Not Have Any Foreign Military Base

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said while speaking at the UN General Assembly Session on September 21 ?the Georgia has a very firm position and will not have any new foreign military bases on its territory.?

He added that the Russian military bases on the Georgian soil are ?left over from a period that no longer exists.  Left over from a country [Soviet Union] that does not exist.?

Recently the Russian media quoted sources in the Kremlin saying that the issue of a possible deployment of a military base in Georgia by a country other than Russia or Georgia, represents a hitch in the signing of a comprehensive framework agreement between Russia and Georgia.

Russia insists on a provision being included in the agreement which restricts Georgia from allowing any foreign country to deploy its military bases on the Georgian soil, while Georgia refuses to accept this provision.