Russia suspends troop pull-out from Georgia

US and Britain may block Russian UN Security Council motion against Georgia.
Moscow has circulated a draft resolution expressing grave concern over Georgia’s “provocative” actions in “posting troops in the breakaway Abkhazia” The US and UK seek a more balanced text.
Amid escalating tensions, Russian diplomats were pulled out of Tbilisi Friday after Georgian police and guards surrounded the regional headquarters of Russian troops in the capital. Earlier, 4 Russian soldiers were arrested for spying on Georgia (picture). Moscow countered by suspending the scheduled pullout of its troops from Georgia. Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili, who gained power in the 2003 Rose Revolution, accuses Russia of propping up Abkhaz separatists, which Moscow denies. The Kremlin is also furious over Georgia’s application to join NATO.