EU Mission Intensifies Patrols In Georgia

Hansjorg Haber, head of the EU monitoring mission in Georgia

TBILISI -- The European Union's monitoring mission in Georgia (EUMM) is intensifying its patrols in Georgia proper bordering the breakaway Georgian territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports.

EUMM head Hansjoerg Haber told RFE/RL that the patrol reinforcement is related to the upcoming publication of a report by an international commission headed by Swiss diplomat Heidi Tagliavini on the origins, course, and results of the five-day Russian-Georgian war in 2008.

According to EUobserver.com, Haber told journalists in Brussels that the additional patrols are purely a preventative measure.

Georgian opposition members say that the report -- which is due sometime next week -- may worsen the situation in the conflict zone if it finds that Georgian authorities started the war and could lead to new demonstrations against Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili.