A day after his Georgian counterpart, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed a cease fire agreement on Saturday, but on the ground a very different scene was unfolding, with Russian troops blowing up a railway bridge outside of Tbilisi, and there were reports that Russian forces had taken over additional towns in Georgia.
Reports claimed Russian troops were looting towns and villages. While Moscow was quick to deny the reports, a Reuters TV crew filmed the damaged railway bridge outside Tbilisi which had been blown up by Russian forces. Russian troops also continued to man a checkpoint in the town of Gori on Saturday and barred journalists from approaching the area.
On Friday, President Mikhail Saakashvili signed the six point ceasefire agreement which was then transmitted to Moscow and signed by Medvedev on Saturday.
Little details of the plan are available but reports claim Saakashvili was reluctant to sign the agreement that grants Russian troops limited patrols in South Ossetia, and only after several amendments were made did he put his signature to the truce agreement.
During a visit to Tbilisi on Friday US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice insisted that Russian forces leave Georgia immediately and declared that with the signing of the peace accord ”all Russian troops and any para military and irregular troops that entered with them must leave immediately.”
US President George W. Bush called on Russia to stop bullying Georgia. Only the coming days will tell whether Russia will live up to its commitments or whether it will continue to violate an already fragile and liquid situation.
08/16/08
Margot Dudkevitch
Infolive.tv
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