Russia has led peacekeeping contingents in Georgia's breakaway regions since the bloody ethnic conflicts in the 1990s. But Tbilisi, which wants to regain control of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, has consistently demanded their withdrawal, accusing Russia of backing separatism.
"The accusations set out in a statement by Georgia's state minister [for conflict resolution] are untrue, as the statement ignores the efforts the peacekeeping forces have been making to resolve the conflict," said Vladimir Ivanov, an aide to the peacekeeping headquarters commander in the region.
Georgia's state minister for conflict resolution, Merab Antadze, has issued a statement, accusing Russian troops of inactivity, which he said has led to the deaths of and injuries to Georgian civilians in the Tskhinvali region, the name Tbilisi uses for South Ossetia.
The statement came following a mine explosion in the conflict zone, which wounded a local villager.
"Responding to the Georgian statement, we should say that peacekeepers have implemented and will continue implementing in full the set objectives of isolating the warring parties and maintaining peace, strictly in line with their mandate," Ivanov said.
Russia insists its peacekeeping presence in the region has helped end bloodshed, while its withdrawal will trigger a new spiral of violence in the region, given Georgia's "bellicose" resolve to regain the regions and strong anti-Georgian sentiments there.
The issue was in the center of a bitter diplomatic dispute between Moscow and Tbilisi earlier this fall, and Georgia is still under Russia-imposed stringent economic restrictions.
On October 13, the UN Security Council approved a Russian-sponsored draft resolution on Georgia, extending the Russian peacekeeping mission in the region until April 15, 2007.
