NATO "cannot have normal relations" with Russia

NATO foreign ministers have said they "cannot continue business as usual" with Russia, the BBC says. They also demanded that Moscow pull troops from Georgia immediately. NATO "cannot have normal relations" with Russia The declaration followed talks in Brussels about the conflict between Moscow and Tbilisi over Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia. Some Russian troops have been seen leaving the Georgian town of Gori. But Georgia's interior ministry dismissed the move as a "show aimed at creating the illusion of a withdrawal". The Russian military has warned that the withdrawal process will be slow until the weekend at least, and that troops will remain in an undefined buffer zone around South Ossetia. It says such a move is permitted under the ceasefire deal which allows Russia to take The OSCE, which was meeting on the sidelines of the NATO talks, already has nine observers there. Earlier, in an apparent goodwill gesture Russia exchanged 15 Georgian prisoners for five of its own troops at a Russian checkpoint in Igoeti, about 30km from Georgia's capital. Both sides have accused the other of violating an EU-brokered peace plan that was signed by the presidents of Georgia and Russia last week. Following the crisis talks in Brussels, the 26 NATO foreign ministers said in a joint statement that they could not have normal relations with Russia as long as Moscow had troops in Georgia. "The Alliance is considering seriously the implications of Russia's actions for the NATO-Russia relationship," the statement said, read out by NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. "We have determined that we cannot continue with business as usual." Scheffer added that he could not see how the NATO-Russia Council - set up in 2002 as a framework for dialogue - could convene at this time. But he said lines of communication would not be abandoned. "The future of our relations with Russia will depend on the concrete actions Russia will take to abide by the words of President Dmitry Medvedev [regarding the peace plan], which is not happening at the moment," Scheffer said. He also said that the member states had agreed to set up a NATO-Georgia commission to strengthen ties with Tbilisi, but stopped short of giving a timetable for Georgia's accession to NATO. Scheffer also said that he sees "no similarities" between the situations in Kosovo and South Ossetia. When reporters asked him about the influence the Kosovo precedent has had on the crisis in and around South Ossetia, Scheffer said, "I see no similarities between Kosovo and South Ossetia". "I won't go into details, but my answer is, 'no, there are no similarities'," the NATO chief was quoted as saying. In Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reacted to today's news from Brussels by criticizing the announcement coming from the NATO meeting. Lavrov said the alliance's foreign ministers' conclusions were "unilateral", and accused NATO of trying to preserve "the criminal Tbilisi regime". "NATO is trying to make the victim appear to be the aggressor and is protecting the criminal, failing regime, looking for ways to rearm the current Georgian leadership," Lavrov stated. Also today, Russia’s envoy to NATO Dmitry Rogozin said that Moscow's cooperation with NATO is jeopardized because of the Alliance's favorable position to Georgia, while relations could worsen even further if Georgia becomes a NATO member. He said that Russia would be following very closely today’s NATO meeting called by the U.S. to “reconsider relations with Russia because of its military actions in Georgia.” "We will pay special attention to see what decisions NATO foreign ministers take,” Rogozin said. "If the decisions are exclusively in Georgia’s favor, whom we consider as the aggressor in this conflict, we won’t be able to maintain quality relations with NATO members,” he warned. Ahead of today’s meeting of NATO foreign ministers, the presidents of Poland and Lithuania, Lech Kaczynski and Valdas Adamkus, called on Georgia and Ukraine to be accepted immediately into the alliance. "Only that can prevent further escalation of violence in Georgia and return security to ordinary people,” the two presidents stated. In their joint statement, they said that Russia’s operations in Georgia had gone beyond any “reasonable measures that secure civilian security” and that they were causing mass looting. Russia opposes Georgia’s intentions of becoming a NATO member, as it would bring NATO up to Russia’s southern border. Some analysts think that this was the main reason behind the conflict between Russia and Georgia. Condoleezza Rice, Bernard Kouchner seen at the NATO meeting today (Tanjug)

NATO "cannot have normal relations" with Russia

The declaration followed talks in Brussels about the conflict between Moscow and Tbilisi over Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia.

Some Russian troops have been seen leaving the Georgian town of Gori.

But Georgia's interior ministry dismissed the move as a "show aimed at creating the illusion of a withdrawal".

The Russian military has warned that the withdrawal process will be slow until the weekend at least, and that troops will remain in an undefined buffer zone around South Ossetia.

It says such a move is permitted under the ceasefire deal which allows Russia to take

The OSCE, which was meeting on the sidelines of the NATO talks, already has nine observers there.

Earlier, in an apparent goodwill gesture Russia exchanged 15 Georgian prisoners for five of its own troops at a Russian checkpoint in Igoeti, about 30km from Georgia's capital.

Both sides have accused the other of violating an EU-brokered peace plan that was signed by the presidents of Georgia and Russia last week.

Following the crisis talks in Brussels, the 26 NATO foreign ministers said in a joint statement that they could not have normal relations with Russia as long as Moscow had troops in Georgia.

"The Alliance is considering seriously the implications of Russia's actions for the NATO-Russia relationship," the statement said, read out by NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer.

"We have determined that we cannot continue with business as usual."

Scheffer added that he could not see how the NATO-Russia Council - set up in 2002 as a framework for dialogue - could convene at this time.

But he said lines of communication would not be abandoned.

"The future of our relations with Russia will depend on the concrete actions Russia will take to abide by the words of President Dmitry Medvedev [regarding the peace plan], which is not happening at the moment," Scheffer said.

He also said that the member states had agreed to set up a NATO-Georgia commission to strengthen ties with Tbilisi, but stopped short of giving a timetable for Georgia's accession to NATO.

Scheffer also said that he sees "no similarities" between the situations in Kosovo and South Ossetia.

When reporters asked him about the influence the Kosovo precedent has had on the crisis in and around South Ossetia, Scheffer said, "I see no similarities between Kosovo and South Ossetia".

"I won't go into details, but my answer is, 'no, there are no similarities'," the NATO chief was quoted as saying.

In Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reacted to today's news from Brussels by criticizing the announcement coming from the NATO meeting.

Lavrov said the alliance's foreign ministers' conclusions were "unilateral", and accused NATO of trying to preserve "the criminal Tbilisi regime".

"NATO is trying to make the victim appear to be the aggressor and is protecting the criminal, failing regime, looking for ways to rearm the current Georgian leadership," Lavrov stated.

Also today, Russia’s envoy to NATO Dmitry Rogozin said that Moscow's cooperation with NATO is jeopardized because of the Alliance's favorable position to Georgia, while relations could worsen even further if Georgia becomes a NATO member.

He said that Russia would be following very closely today’s NATO meeting called by the U.S. to “reconsider relations with Russia because of its military actions in Georgia.”

"We will pay special attention to see what decisions NATO foreign ministers take,” Rogozin said.

"If the decisions are exclusively in Georgia’s favor, whom we consider as the aggressor in this conflict, we won’t be able to maintain quality relations with NATO members,” he warned.

Ahead of today’s meeting of NATO foreign ministers, the presidents of Poland and Lithuania, Lech Kaczynski and Valdas Adamkus, called on Georgia and Ukraine to be accepted immediately into the alliance.

"Only that can prevent further escalation of violence in Georgia and return security to ordinary people,” the two presidents stated.

In their joint statement, they said that Russia’s operations in Georgia had gone beyond any “reasonable measures that secure civilian security” and that they were causing mass looting.

Russia opposes Georgia’s intentions of becoming a NATO member, as it would bring NATO up to Russia’s southern border. Some analysts think that this was the main reason behind the conflict between Russia and Georgia.