Russia Denies Plotting to Sabotage Georgian Energy System

On November 20 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov denied Tbilisi?s allegations that Russian special services are plotting sabotage against the Georgian energy system.

RIA Novosti news agency reports that Lavrov, who was speaking at a news conference in the Chilean capital Santiago, said that Georgia and Russia agreed to jointly cooperate in the energy sector and recalled an agreement reached by Georgia?s ex-President Eduard Shevardnadze and Russian President Vladimir Putin last year over the rehabilitation of the Enguri hydropower station, on the administrative border of breakaway Abkhazia.

?We should not look for artificial reasons; simply fulfillment of the commitments is necessary,? Sergey Lavrov said.

Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Defense and Security, MP Givi Targamadze said at a session of the National Security Council on November 19 that the Russian reconnaissance units are plotting to sabotage energy facilities in Georgia.

President Saakashvili also said on November 20 that ?certain groups? intend to sabotage the Georgian energy system.