Oct 29, 2008, 15:06 GMT
Moscow - Russia's lower house of parliament on Wednesday ratified friendship treaties with South Ossetia, over which Russia fought a war with Georgia, and Georgia's other breakaway region of Abkhazia.
The treaties provide for Moscow to base thousands of troops in the two separatist regions, which it recognized as independent states after the five-day war in August.
Lawmakers in the State Duma unanimously voted in favour of the accords formalizing diplomatic, business and military relations with the regions.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said Wednesday that Moscow planned to station 3,800 troops in each area to protect against a Georgian attack.
Western leaders see the deployment as a new cause for concern over Russia's actions in the region. The European Union has 300 unarmed observers monitoring the border regions adjacent to South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Karasin told deputies Wednesday that Russia could reduce its troop numbers, but reiterated criticism of the EU monitors ability to stem mounting violence in the border zones.
'Of course, if we can achieve more robust security there, we'll draw the appropriate conclusions with respect to the numbers of the Russian troops deployed,' he said.
Russia's army rolled into Georgian territory to halt an attempt by Tbilisi to re-assert control over its rebel area of South Ossetia in August.
Russia is virtually alone in recognizing the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, who threw off Tbilisi's rule in the early 1990s.
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