Russia's permanent representative at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Alexei Borodavkin said this at a session of the OSCE Permanent Council.
Commenting on Azerbaijan's concern over the transfer of Russian armaments and military hardware from the bases in Georgia to Armenia, Borodavkin said: "Such actions do not pose threat to the adjacent states."
Russian armaments and military hardware to be removed to Armenia will not exceed the limits of CFE Treaty and will be under Russia's permanent and total control, he added.
Borodavkin said: "Russian and Georgian Foreign Ministers Sergei Lavrov and Salome Zurabishvili instructed their delegations at the military talks to draft an agreement on the terms, functioning and withdrawal of the Russian military bases from Batumi and Akhalkalaki and other Russian military facilities in Georgia."
"This work has already begun," Borodavkin added.
Moreover, the sides came out for the resumption of Germany's efforts in the OSCE to set up an international mission for monitoring the situation on the territory of the former Russian military base in Gudauta in Abkhazia (a self-proclaimed republic in Georgia), Borodavkin said.
The Russian and Georgian foreign ministries said that the withdrawal of military hardware from the Russian bases would begin in 2005. At least 40 pieces will be pulled out by September 1, 2005. The withdrawal of the Akhalkalaki base will be over before by the end of 2007 depending on the weather. The withdrawal of the Batumi base and the command of the Russian group of forces in the Transcaucasian region will be completed during 2008.
