Stop arming Georgia, top Russian general tells NATO chiefs

May 15, 2008, 17:10 GMT

Brussels - NATO member states should stop providing arms to Georgia, as their actions are creating dangerous instability in the South Caucasus, Russia's top general said Thursday.

'The only decision today which may stop ... a (possible) military conflict in Georgia is to stop the militarization of Georgia. Unfortunately, in the past several months and years this has been growing, and I gave some examples today,' Russia's Chief of Staff General Yuri Baluyevski said.

'NATO has to take measures in order to prevent arms supplies to that region,' he added.

During a meeting with NATO national chiefs of staff in Brussels, Baluyevski named NATO members Turkey, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and the United States as countries who are supplying Georgia with arms, NATO sources said.

He also defended Russia's recent decision to send more troops into the breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia, arguing that the number of troops was still within treaty limitations and that 'thanks to Russia's peacekeepers, there is no violence between Abkhazia and Georgia.'

'If there are any proposals that peacekeepers from other countries, from any European nations go to that region to preserve peace and minimal stability, we would be happy to accept the proposal, but that doesn't happen,' Baluyevski said.

Abkhazia fought a war of independence against Georgia in the early 1990s, and has consistently refused to accept Tbilisi's rule. Russia has maintained troops in the area since 1994.

However, after NATO leaders at an April summit in Bucharest said that Georgia would one day join the alliance, tensions in the region worsened dramatically, with Georgia accusing Russia of shooting down a spy plane over Abkhazia and Russia accusing Georgia of wanting to start a war in the area.

Baluyevski insisted that Russia was not to blame for the tension, saying rather that 'first what we need to do is to stop the militarization of Georgia and stop military supplies going there.'

However, he also said that NATO generals 'treated the issue with a lot of understanding,' and that he was 'satisfied' with the meeting.