'Russia only partly fulfils Georgia ceasefire'

Russia has not fully complied with the terms of a ceasefire in Georgia, France's Foreign Minister said yesterday, casting fresh doubt on whether frozen EU-Russia partnership talks will resume soon.

Russian soldiers and tanks pushed into Georgia's breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and adjacent "buffer zones", as part of a massive counter-strike in August to crush an attempt by Georgian forces to retake South Ossetia.

Moscow pulled out of the buffer zones this week, before an October 10 deadline set out in the French-brokered ceasefire. But Georgia says the Kremlin has not fully complied because Russian soldiers remain in the two separatist regions.

Asked in the Georgian town of Gori, near South Ossetia, if Russia had honoured the ceasefire deal, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner told reporters: "I think so, but partly."

"This is not complete. This is not perfect. It's just the beginning. This is not the end," Mr Kouchner, whose country holds the European Union's rotating presidency, said in a tent camp for Georgians displaced by the fighting.

He said outstanding issues would be tackled at international talks beginning in Geneva on October 15 at the level of experts.

After a tour of the buffer zone vacated this week by Russian forces - where human rights groups say hundreds of ethnic Georgian homes were wrecked after the ceasefire came into force - Mr Kouchner took a swipe at the Russian military.

"It's always very sad to see houses destroyed and people coming back and discovering their belongings in desperate state," said Mr Kouchner, speaking in English. "It was not a good march of the Russian army. Not at all."

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana confirmed Russian forces had withdrawn from areas outside the rebel regions and said he hoped it would allow for villagers to return.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said his country had done everything in its power to comply with the ceasefire.

"I believe in this respect everything is developing all right," he told reporters at a regional summit in Kyrgyzstan.

EU foreign ministers could decide next week whether to restart talks on a strategic partnership treaty with Russia that the 27-member bloc has put on hold until Russia has complied with the ceasefire deal.

Mr Kouchner and EU observers will present their findings at a meeting of foreign ministers on Monday, preparing a possible decision two days later by EU leaders to restart the talks.