Georgian Speaker: Moscow And Tbilisi Might Change Tone Of Bilateral Relations

Russia and Georgia may change the tone of their bilateral relations, such an opinion was shared with the press by Zurab Zhvaniya, the speaker of the Georgian parliament, after a Friday meeting with Gennady Seleznev, the speaker of the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament. The more than an hour-long meeting was held in the lower house of the Russian parliament. Zhvaniya called Seleznev's invitation for him to make a working visit to Moscow "at this difficult time" "a significant political gesture." According to him, the talk proved that "despite many differences, Russia and Georgia may sit to the negotiating table to solve problems." The Georgian speaker reported that, at the meeting, they reached agreement to "intensify the interparliamentary dialogue." According to him, there are plans for the two countries' parliamentarians to hold monthly meetings to have a better insight into the situation and make "moderate and balanced" declarations. In his turn, Seleznev called for parliamentarians of Russia and Georgia and the press to be more reserved in estimating the relations between Russia and Georgia. Seleznev recalled that work to draft a new treaty between Russia and Georgia is underway, while the two countries' secret services are negotiating on the fight against terrorism.