EU Urges Russia to Leave Georgia

Russia agreed at a European summit in Istanbul in 1999 to close its four bases in Georgia. Troops have withdrawn from two of the bases and a deadline for withdrawal from the remaining two has not been worked out. The issue, a consistent irritant between the two countries, has taken on new prominence since the election Jan. 4 of Mikheil Saakashvili as president, to replace Eduard Shevardnadze, who resigned in November after street protests. "The position of the European Union is that the agreement that was signed in 1999 in Istanbul be carried out," the EU's Javier Solana said after meetings with Saakashvili and other senior officials. Aslan Abashidze, the leader of Georgia's autonomous Adzharia region and a fierce opponent of Saakashvili, met with high-level officials in Moscow on Thursday to discuss the strengthening of economic ties with Russia, Itar-Tass reported. Adzharia includes the larger of the two Russian bases in Georgia.