"Russia's aid in repairing railroad tracks in Abkhazia using its railroad troops was discussed. The necessary clarifications were provided on the issue," the Kremlin press service said, adding that Dmitry Medvedev and Mikheil Saakashvili had agreed to resume discussions on the sidelines of an economic forum in St. Petersburg due on June 6-8.
On Monday, Georgia handed over a protest note to Russia after it deployed unarmed railroad troops in Abkhazia on May 31, claiming Russia was preparing for military intervention. The ex-Soviet state is accusing Russia of trying to annex Abkhazia and the other breakaway territory, South Ossetia.
Russia defended the move: "We feel the need to stress that the task of restoring the rail infrastructure on Abkhaz territory is fully in line with Russian-Georgian agreements," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.
Tensions between Russia and Georgia have been consistently strained since Western-leaning President Mikheil Saakashvili came to power in the South Caucasus country in early 2004.
The long-running row over Georgia's breakaway regions, along with Tbilisi's plans to join NATO, have been major factors behind the dispute. In a recent development, Georgia accused Russia of shooting down an unmanned reconnaissance plane over Abkhazia on April 20. Moscow denies involvement in the incident dismissing the claims as based on unreliable evidence.
