Russia Accuses Georgia of Plans to Invade Breakaway Region

Tensions between Russia and Georgia increased dramatically today when Moscow accused Tbilisi of planning to invade the breakaway republic of Abkhazia and said it was sending more troops to the region.

Russia's foreign ministry today claimed that Georgia had amassed more than 1,500 troops in the mountainous Upper Kodori Valley - a small but strategic enclave inside the separatist territory but controlled by Georgian forces.

The Russian foreign ministry said it was "possible to conclude that Georgia is preparing a base for a military operation against Abkhazia". Russia was responding by sending more peacekeeping troops to prevent a Georgian attack, it added.

Today's move sharply escalates the crisis between the two ex-Soviet neighbors over Abkhazia, a picturesque territory on the eastern coast of the Black Sea. Abkhazia broke away from Georgia following a civil war in 1992-3. Georgia wants the territory back.

Earlier this month Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, recognized Abkhazia and South Ossetia, another breakaway region of Georgia, as legal entities - prompting a furious response from Tbilisi, which accused Russia of "de facto annexation".

Today Georgia denied that it was planning to recapture Abkhazia, where Russia has around 1,000 peacekeeping troops under a 1994 accord. "This information is false. It is aimed at exacerbating tensions in the conflict area," Georgian interior ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili told Interfax.

Georgia's prime minister, Lado Gurgenidze, condemned Russia's move as "irresponsible" - and said Moscow was bolstering its peacekeeping contingent in Abkhazia to 3,000 troops.

Speaking after a meeting of Georgia's national security council, he said: "If this step is done, it will cause extreme destabilization. We will view each Russian soldier and each military vehicle brought into Abkhazia as illegal and as potential aggressors."

Gurgenidze said that "the process has already been started", adding that Russian armored personnel carriers were now rolling into Abkhazia.'

He denied Russian defence ministry reports that Georgia had moved heavy artillery into the Kodori gorge - and said that there were only police posts there. Last week Georgia accused Russia of shooting down an unmanned drone over Abkhazia. Russia denied the claim.

Today's developments are likely to alarm the US and the EU, which have watched the crisis in the conflict-prone Caucuses region with growing concern. Both have expressed their support for Georgia and its territorial integrity.

Today, however, Abkhazia's foreign ministry claimed that the threat of a Georgian attack was real. "We have a very distinct feeling that Georgia is preparing something," Maxim Gunjia, Abkhazia's vice foreign minister told the Guardian. "We expect an attack from Georgia at any time."

Russia's defence ministry today confirmed it had set up an additional "15 observation posts" across the de facto border between Abkhazia and Georgia. As well as troops, Russia also operates a major Soviet-era military base in the territory.

The dispute has also spilled over into Russia's negotiations to join the WTO. Georgia today said it would block Russia's application for membership unless Putin rescinded his order to establish direct links with Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The decision "contradicted WTO norms," Georgia's lead WTO negotiator Tamara Kovziridze, said.

Georgia and Russia, its formal imperial master, have had strained relations since the 2003 Rose Revolution swept the staunchly pro-Western Mikhail Saakashvili into power in Tbilisi. Putin's decision to increase links with the separatist territories follows Georgia's recent unsuccessful attempt to join Nato.