Translated material
Akhalkalaki Express
Russia exports military equipment from Georgia
Today, the first train with military equipment from a Russian base will depart from the Georgian city of Akhalkalaki in transit through Azerbaijan to Russia. Moscow, therefore, begins to implement the agreements to close the Akhalkalaki base, which will finally happen in 2007. In general, the Russian military presence in Georgia will end in 2008.Armored vehicles from Akhalkalaki are first delivered to the neighboring Tsalka region, where the Russian military has set up a temporary field camp. Deputy Commander of the Group of Russian Forces in Transcaucasia, Colonel Vladimir Kuparadze, told Vremya Novostei that a special railway platform has been equipped here. The first echelon will transport seven T-72 tanks, four armored communications personnel carriers, eight BRDMs and other weapons. The second echelon (there will be 21 in total) will be released on May 23. By the fall, all armored vehicles and weapons will be removed from Akhalkalaki, this is over 300 units.
The official representative of the Georgian Ministry of Defense, Nana Intskirveli, told VN that the Georgian military will ensure the safety of the passage of trains to the border with Azerbaijan. The Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs is also involved in the process, since protest rallies of the local population against the withdrawal of bases have already taken place in Akhalkalaki. About 700 Akhalkalaki residents who have accepted Russian citizenship serve at the Russian base.
In Akhalkalaki, populated mainly by Armenians, they fear not only a deterioration in the social situation, but also that Turkish soldiers will appear here instead of a Russian military base as Georgia integrates into NATO - the border with Turkey is less than 50 km from here. The Georgian authorities assure that this will not happen. The Chief of the Georgian General Staff, Colonel Levan Nikoleishvili, told VN that Georgians who serve at the bases in Akhalkalaki and Batumi are already interested in the possibility of transferring to the Georgian army. According to him, this is completely possible after appropriate testing.