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Top Russian general: Israel armed, trained Georgia forces
By News Agencies
Tags: Russia, Georgia 

Israel supplied Georgian military forces with elite training and arms, a top Russian general was quoted as saying on Tuesday, as Russia and Georgian forces exchanged prisoners of war in a goodwill gesture.

Russian Deputy Chief of General Staff Col.-Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn said Israel had supplied arms to Georgia, delivering weapons systems including eight types of unmanned aircraft and about 100 anti-tank mines, AFP reported on Tuesday.

Israeli special forces also helped train Georgian military intelligence units, he said.
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"In 2007, Israeli experts trained Georgian commandos in Georgia and there were plans to supply heavy weaponry, electronic weapons, tanks and other arms at a later date, but the deal didn't work out," Israeli media quoted Nogovitsyn as saying.

Reiterating previous allegations that foreign forces assisted Georgia in its conflict with Russia, Nogovitsyn said three Arabs had been caught dressed as Georgian soldiers near the Black Sea port of Poti.

"Twenty soldiers in Georgian uniform were detained near Poti. Three of them were Arabs," he said without elaborating.

The general also said Georgian military forces are not returning to their permanent bases as required under the terms of a ceasefire agreement.

"Despite the fact that Mr. (Mikheil) Saakashvili has signed the six-point plan and agreed to withdraw Georgian forces to their permanent bases, this condition has not been fulfilled," said Nogovitsyn, referring to the Georgian president.

Nogovitsyn questioned whether the political authorities in Tbilisi had full control over Georgian military forces in the field.

Referring to his assertion that not all Georgian forces had returned to their permanent bases, he said: "Such actions... seriously complicate the general situation and impede the withdrawal process."

Russian and Georgian forces exchanged prisoners on Tuesday in a mutual gesture of goodwill, despite continued tension over Russia's promised withdrawal from positions in Georgia, the head of Georgia's National Security Council said Tuesday.

"The process went smoothly. It was mediated by the French ambassador," Alexander Lomaia said.

The handover included at least one Russian pilot shot down by Georgian forces, an eyewitness said. Two Russian helicopters arrived and ambulances were on the scene. Several people were carried on stretchers.

A Georgian government official said Tbilisi had handed over five Russian servicemen, including two pilots, in exchange for 15 Georgians, including two civilians.

It is not clear how many prisoners each side holds.

"We waited for Georgia's agreement to carry out the swap for 24 hours and we received it not long ago," Igor Konashenkov, a senior Russian ground force official, told the Interfax news agency in Tskhinvali, the capital of the breakaway region of South Ossetia.

Russian forces on Tuesday maintained positions deep inside Georgia proper, despite Moscow's vow to begin withdrawing its troops on Monday.

The partial occupation followed a brief war between Russian and Georgian forces in South Ossetia, after Russia rolled tanks and troops over its southern border to repel an assault by Georgia to retake Tskhinvali from pro-Moscow separatists.

NATO: Cooperation with Russia tied to troops vow

Meanwhile, NATO allies warned Russia on Tuesday that the alliance's
cooperation with Moscow will depend on the pullout of troops from Georgia. They insisted the tiny Caucasus nation remains on track to join NATO despite Moscow's opposition.

"There can be no business as usual under present circumstances," said NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer.

The allies will not hold meetings of the NATO-Russia Council - as Russia
requested a week ago - as long as Russian troops remained in Georgia, de Hoop Scheffer added.

In response, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov criticized NATO, saying the alliance is pursuing anti-Russian policies and supporting an aggressive Georgia.
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  1.   Unlike the Arabs, they seem not to trade in human bodies: live, 16:37  |  Albert 19/08/08
  2.   no kidding 16:45  |  An astounded reader 19/08/08
  3.   Not a good news for Israel 16:56  |  Persian Hero 19/08/08
  4.   is that really news? 17:00  |  frenz 19/08/08
  5.   One more lesson from the 2º Lebanese... 17:04  |  Peter 19/08/08
  6.   Russia can shut it`s big mouth 17:20  |  Joey 19/08/08
  7.   So what? 17:23  |  Sol 19/08/08
  8.   Where is the proof? 17:27  |  Dan 19/08/08
  9.   Top Kfar-Saba Resident: Russia financed, supplied 17:42  |  Yonatan 19/08/08
  10.   persian hero,are you really this stupid? 17:48  |  iran is next 19/08/08
  11.   Russian style: It`s the Jews` fault, of course... 17:51  |  Fortuna Benmayor 19/08/08
  12.   Help to real friend. 18:05  |  Vital 19/08/08
  13.   No.. No Kidding!! Guess What 18:13  |  What R U Thinking 19/08/08
  14.   Israel armed,trained Giorgian forces. 18:17  |  David Nigel Braham 19/08/08
  15.   #10 Iran is Next (Terrornator) 18:21  |  ballistic 19/08/08
  16.   #8 Dan 18:26  |  ballistic 19/08/08
  17.   #9 Yonatan 18:29  |  ballistic 19/08/08
  18.   # joey 18:30  |  Axel 19/08/08
  19.   #4 frenz - wishful thinking 18:31  |  Yonatan 19/08/08
  20.   A 2600 years old synagogue in Zhinval 18:32  |  Nick Potzayid 19/08/08
  21.   # 9 yonatan 18:34  |  Axel 19/08/08
  22.   astounded reader 18:39  |  Axel 19/08/08
  23.   Israel`s future survival 18:47  |  US Observer 19/08/08
  24.   #10, Stupidity is your unique Property! 18:47  |  Persian Hero 19/08/08
  25.   Israel pulled a bad move 18:48  |  ID 19/08/08
  26.   Boy oh boy, did Israel back a loser there! 18:51  |  Chanalau, Tova 19/08/08
  27.   Tova 19:30  |  Yankele 19/08/08
  28.   Some Training? 19:31  |  Yosemite 19/08/08
  29.   #27 Say Yankele 19:55  |  ballistic 19/08/08
  30.   Russia Trolling for Sympathy from Anyone: Its Those @#!% Jews! 20:01  |  Ovadiah ben Avraham 19/08/08
  31.   Israel trained Georgia to attack Russia 20:03  |  Harold 19/08/08
  32.   Persian Hero in good hope that the Russian vision about the 20:15  |  Jew- and Bookburner 19/08/08
  33.   Guys -- No One has to Tell Jews About Russia 20:19  |  Ovadiah ben Avraham 19/08/08
  34.   So what? Russia too has a right to train an arm Iranians/Syrians 20:21  |  Fair Man 19/08/08
  35.   Picking the wrong friends. 20:23  |  Erastus CoupeDeVille 19/08/08
  36.   #20: That would be 600 BCE Before Roman Dispersion of Jews 20:23  |  Ovadiah ben Avraham 19/08/08
  37.   Maybe we should supply Georgia with defensive weapons 20:25  |  Gee 19/08/08
  38.   David Nigel Braham - Armchair General 20:26  |  General 19/08/08
  39.   Israel needs OIL 20:31  |  Guy From NYC 19/08/08
  40.   Axel (22), you may confidently assume as well that the Russians 20:45  |  Jew- and Bookburner 19/08/08
  41.   Superpower Wannabe 20:51  |  Cool B 19/08/08
  42.   Didn`t anyone notice this? 21:01  |  JES 19/08/08
  43.   To #32 - Arabs and Jews are both Semites 21:04  |  Jon 19/08/08
  44.   # 40 Jewburner 21:39  |  Axel 19/08/08
  45.   ballistic 21:51  |  Ellis 19/08/08
  46.   Arming Georgia 21:56  |  Brod 19/08/08
  47.   #38 Hey General 21:59  |  what dya know? 19/08/08
  48.   #38 For massive General 22:12  |  Urani Diot 19/08/08
  49.   Israel Armed, trained Georgia 22:40  |  Arnotiger 19/08/08
  50.   This plan by the Crime Syndicate & its junior partner in crime 22:42  |  lakshmi 19/08/08
  51.   Israel also supplies Russia 23:12  |  Mike 19/08/08
  52.   GUY from NY how does one get oil from Georgia?? 23:16  |  PETER SM 19/08/08
  53.   COOL B You sure Israel was not doing your countries bidding.? 23:18  |  PETER SM 19/08/08
  54.   Oooh tovarysh Nogovitsyn,please! 00:29  |  ME 20/08/08
  55.   Good for Israel... 00:58  |  Lynn 20/08/08
  56.   #46 PeterSM. U.S. and Israeli jets... 01:26  |  Maureen Ann 20/08/08
  57.   #37 Gee, no they didn`t! 01:48  |  ballistic 20/08/08
  58.   #39 Yes Guy from NYC 01:52  |  ballistic 20/08/08
  59.   #5 Chavez an antisemite? 01:56  |  ballistic 20/08/08
  60.   #24 Persian......no, the states won`t break away. 01:58  |  Lynn 20/08/08
  61.   #47 Peter SM 02:04  |  ballistic 20/08/08
  62.   #31 S. Ossetia is Part of Georgia, not Russia 02:08  |  DesMnsDave 20/08/08
  63.   ballistic #49 try reading the news 02:34  |  Gee 20/08/08
  64.   Ellis #43 Stay in.... 02:41  |  Gray 20/08/08
  65.   #53 Ballistic. Hugo Chavez - THE man! 03:01  |  Maureen Ann 20/08/08
  66.   This whole story is fake 03:36  |  Daniel 20/08/08
  67.   #54 Lynn 04:06  |  Persian Hero 20/08/08
  68.   the russian bear reappears... 04:14  |  Mark 20/08/08
  69.   Still unexplained 04:16  |  Mark Lincoln 20/08/08