Nato envoys on Georgian mission
September 16, 2008 00:00:00
Top Nato officials have arrived in the Georgian capital Tbilisi to express support for the country following its short war with Russia, reports BBC.
Nato's chief said the deal that allowed Russia to keep forces in Georgia's breakaway regions was "not acceptable".
However, the first meeting of the Nato-Georgia Commission is unlikely to lead to any firm commitment on Georgian membership, correspondents say.
Meanwhile, the EU announced 500m euros in aid to help Georgia's recovery.
European Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said the funds would go to assisting internally displaced people, post-conflict rehabilitation and economic recovery, and towards new infrastructure.
In Brussels, European Union foreign ministers were set to clear the way for at least 200 ceasefire monitors to deploy to buffer zones around South Ossetia and Abkhazia, ahead of an expected Russian troop withdrawal by 10 October.
It is unclear whether the monitors will actually be allowed to enter the breakaway regions, which are full of Russian troops.
Russia has recognised the two regions' independence, and President Dmitry Medvedev said he would sign agreements this week formalising diplomatic relations and establishing military links.
Moscow has already announced that it intends to base 3,800 troops in each of the two regions.
But Nato Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer criticised the EU-brokered ceasefire deal that allowed Russian forces to remain in the breakaway regions.
"Let me say that that is difficult to swallow," he told the Financial Times.
He said the terms contradicted an earlier six-point plan that called for both sides to revert to the status quo before the fighting began.
"If the Russians are staying in South Ossetia with so many forces, I do not consider this as a return to the status quo," he said.