Russia is to expel three senior Georgian diplomats in Moscow in
retaliation for similar moves by Tbilisi, Russian Foreign Ministry
spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said Thursday.
"A Georgian diplomat has been told that three senior diplomats
of the Georgian embassy in Moscow will be declared personae
non-grata following the unfriendly steps of Georgia," Kamynin said
after Thursday's meeting between Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
Alexander Losyukov and Georgia's Charge d'Affairs Givi Shugarov,
summoned to the Foreign Ministry earlier in the day.
"Also, the Georgian diplomat's attention was drawn to the fact
that all allegations by the Georgian leadership about some
interference by Russia in Georgia's internal affairs had nothing to
do with the reality and were nothing but attempts by the Georgian
authorities to mask their own inability to cope with internal
problems. Russia expressed the hope that common sense will prevail
and Russian-Georgian relations will return to normal in the near
future," Kamynin said.
On Wednesday, Georgian authorities announced the expulsion of
three Russian diplomats. The Russian Foreign Ministry denounced the
move as "irresponsible political provocation by the Georgian
leadership" and warned that "all the necessary adequate measures
will be taken shortly."
Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said earlier in a
televised address to the nation that "several employees of the
Russian embassy were engaged in subversive activities and espionage
in Georgia. These employees of the Russian embassy will leave
Georgia within days."
He accused the Russian secret services of subversive actions
against Georgia. "We have proof and we will make it public. We have
recalled our ambassador (to Russia) and it's not a theatrical
gesture," the president said.
Saakashvili declared a 15-day nationwide state of emergency late
on Wednesday, as six days of demonstrations have sparked a
worsening crisis.
A total of 508 people were reportedly hospitalized in Tbilisi on
Wednesday after exposure to tear gas or suffering from injuries,
the Itar-Tass news agency said.
"We're extremely concerned about the development of the
situation in Georgia," Kamynin said earlier Thursday, quoted by the
Itar-Tass news agency. "We believe the imposition of a state of
emergency and the attempts to forge an image of an enemy out of
Russia is proof of the Georgian leadership's inability to resolve
internal political problems in a civilized way," he said.
(Xinhua News Agency November 9, 2007)
