NEW COLD WAR? Russia "Concerned" Over Washington's Plans To Ship Arms To Georgia

NEW COLD WAR? Russia "Concerned" Over Washington's Plans To Ship Arms To Georgia

Global Research, March 28, 2012

-"Russia has drawn the attention of the U.S. Department of State on many occasions to the increasingly frequent visits by U.S. warships to Georgian ports, including warships equipped with Aegis combat systems."

MOSCOW: Moscow has expressed its concerns to Washington over U.S. plans to ship weapons to the Georgian contingent in the International Assistance Force in Afghanistan, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesmen Alexander Lukashevich said.

"We have reacted by referring a note to the U.S. Embassy and by expressing our concern," he said at a press briefing in Moscow on Tuesday.

Lukashevich said that the U.S. Embassy informed the Russian side last year that Washington plans to ship fire arms and armored vehicles to the Georgian contingent in Afghanistan.

"We think it is of crucial importance to ensure that the arms used by the Georgian contingent in Afghanistan do not get into Georgia," the Russian diplomat said.

Georgia's participation in the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan is often used as a pretext for Georgia's re-militarization, he said.

"The Saakashvili regime could use these weapons against Abkhazia and against South Ossetia, including against Russian citizens residing there," Lukashevich said.

Any military cooperation with Georgia may entail serious consequences for the world and for regional security, he said.

"Russia has drawn the attention of the U.S. Department of State on many occasions to the increasingly frequent visits by U.S. warships to Georgian ports, including warships equipped with Aegis combat systems," he said.

"Whichever explanations may be provided, it is clear that the Georgian leadership sees these visits as an encouragement for its revanchist plans," Lukashevich said.

NEW COLD WAR? Russia "Concerned" Over Washington's Plans To Ship Arms To Georgia