"Our delegations did a good job and the frame agreement was 90% coordinated. However, some problems remained. The problems will be discussed at the consultations in the foreign ministry," Mr. Chechelashvili disclosed during his two-day visit to St Petersburg.
According to him, the agreement will be further considered in the course of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's visit to Georgia, scheduled for the second part of January, 2005.
"I believe that by the time of Mr. Lavrov's visit we will prepare serious proposals concerning the final affirmation of the agreement," the Georgian Ambassador said.
"The frame agreement is highly important for Georgia since it can form a solid base for cooperation promoting the development of our relations in all directions," he noted.
Mr. Chechelashvili stressed that the withdrawal of Russian military bases from the Georgian territory is not an obligatory provision for conclusion of the frame agreement.
"The agreement is a process different from the issue concerning the withdrawal of the Russian military bases," he added.
However, Mr. Chechelashvili considers it possible that the frame agreement will have a reference that the both sides sign a separate agreement on the issue concerning the military bases.
According to the Georgian Ambassador, Tbilisi doesn't intend to withdraw from the CIS.
"Georgia doesn't have any plans concerning the withdrawal of its membership from the CIS. We will continue our work within the frames of the CIS and do our utmost to make the best use of the possibilities concerning the organization of the common space for Russia and Georgia," Mr. Chechelashvili said.
At the same time he noted that the CIS is not the most effective regional organization.
"Despite the fact that wedo not think of the CIS as an effective organization there is no sense for us to withdraw from it. It is a good forum for mutual interaction, which was proved by the recent CIS summit in Astana [Kazakhstan], which resulted in serious solutions for a number of accumulated problems," the Georgian Ambassador said.
