Russia steps up preparations for Georgia pullout

TBILISI, Georgia -- Russian forces stepped up preparations Monday to withdraw from bases and checkpoints surrounding two separatist regions in Georgia, four days before a deadline being closely watched by the West.

Moscow must pull back thousands of troops from buffer zones surrounding South Ossetia and Abkhazia by Friday under the terms of a deal brokered by French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Russia left troops in the areas after they routed Georgian forces during an August war.

Heavy activity was observed at installations across Georgia -- from around the central city of Gori, near South Ossetia, to Zugdidi in the west, near Abkhazia on the Black Sea.

At a checkpoint in Kvenatkotsa, northwest of Gori, an Associated Press reporter saw Russian soldiers destroying nonessential equipment before lowering the Russian flag at an adjacent hillside base. Soldiers milled around near seven military transport vehicles brought in to haul out personnel and equipment.

Georgia's Interior Ministry confirmed that Russian forces were making preparations Monday to pull out of at least eight posts across the country.

Maj. Gen. Marat Kulakhmetov, commander of the Russian peacekeepers in the Georgia-Ossetia conflict zone, told Russian media Monday that the six military posts to the south of South Ossetia would be removed within a day of the start of the withdrawal there. It was unclear when that would be.

"No problems are hindering the withdrawal of the observation posts from the southern limits of the security zone. The removal of material and of defense installations is proceeding simultaneously at all six observation posts," Kulakhmetov said, Interfax reported.

Kulakhmetov asked the European Union to ensure the presence of two EU military observers at each post during the withdrawal, Russian news agencies reported.

A spokesman for the EU monitoring mission declined comment, citing confidentiality rules related to the talks.

The cease-fire also calls for both sides to return troops to the positions they held before the fighting broke out -- but Russia's announced plan to keep some 8,000 troops in the regions well exceeds the number deployed there as peacekeepers before the fighting began.

Russia recognized the independence of both South Ossetia and Abkhazia after the fighting.

The Russian Foreign Ministry on Monday reaffirmed Moscow's intention to meet the withdrawal deadline, but accused unspecified forces in Georgia of trying to stir up tensions.

The ministry said the deadly car bomb explosion outside Russian troop headquarters in South Ossetia on Friday and other recent violence showed that "certain forces in Tbilisi ... are deliberately trying to exacerbate the situations in the region and provoke new military actions through a series of terror attacks," according to a statement.

Georgia's Interior Ministry has accused Russian intelligence services of organizing Friday's car bomb blast as an excuse to delay the troop withdrawal.