Russian troops are leaving Georgia and will arrive in the peacekeepers’ zone of responsibility by tomorrow evening. The statement came during a regular briefing from Defence Ministry in Moscow.

According to the Ministry, the situation in the Georgian conflict zone remains tense. The Defence Ministry claims that OSCE observers knew of the date of Georgia's attack, but did not report it to Russian peacekeepers.

The spokesman added that after violating the peacekeeping agreement, Georgian forces will no longer be allowed in the conflict zone.

“Russia believes that from now on only Russian armed forces have the right to perform the peacekeeping duties in the conflict zone. They have consistently and accurately complied with the 1992 bilateral agreement. By violating its mandate, Georgia no longer has the right to participate in the peacekeeping mission,” says the Deputy Chief of Russia's General Staff, Colonel-General Anatoly Nogovitsyn.