Russian trucks remain in Tbilisi

The Russian trucks detained in the zone of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict are staying in Tbilisi under control of the Georgian State Security Ministry (MGB), an officer of the ministry's investigation division reported.

"On July 9, we tried to hand over the detained trucks to Russian servicemen," the ministry's representative said and specified that "with this aim in view they were delivered to the checkpoint of the Tbilisi-based headquarters of the Transcaucasian military district."

"But the Russian servicemen refused to receive the trucks and weapons in Tbilisi and proposed that they should be transferred to the conflict zone," the MGB representative declared.

The MGB representatives refused to accept the Russian proposal, and at present the Russian weapons are in Tbilisi, and the ministry expects the issue will be settled.

In early hours of July 8, the Georgian MGB officers detained a column of ten trucks in the zone of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict, near the Kekhvi village. The trucks belonged to Russian peacekeepers and delivered the cargo from Vladikavkaz (North Ossetia) to Tskhinvali. Eight trucks were returned to the Russian peacekeepers, and two trucks with weapons were confiscated.

The detained weapons were designated to equip the military aerodrome, said commander of the Russian peacekeeping forces in the zone of the Georgian -Ossetian conflict general Svyatoslav Nabzdorov who immediately arrived at the place of the incident. He stressed that the agreement on the transfer of these weapons was reached by the sides earlier within the framework of the Joint Control Commission.

Head of the press service of the Russian Defense Ministry, Colonel Vyacheslav Sedov reported that the column consisted of 10 trucks with equipment for building the aviation commandant's office and a helicopter group. "The missiles transported by one of the trucks were planned for helicopters which should be deployedin Tskhinvali in accordance with the decision of the Joint Control Commission on the settlement of the conflict with a view to control the air space in the region," Mr. Sedov told RIA Novosti.