Cheney to visit war-torn Georgia next week

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55 tons of humanitarian aid
On Sunday, a U.S. Navy destroyer loaded with humanitarian aid reached Georgia’s Black Sea port of Batumi, bringing baby food, milk, bottled water and a message of support for an embattled ally.

The guided missile cruiser, carrying about 55 tons of humanitarian aid, was the first of three American ships scheduled to arrive this week.

But the deputy chief of Russia’s general staff suggested Monday the arrival of U.S. and other NATO warships in the Black Sea would only increase tensions. Russia shares the sea with NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria, as well as Georgia and Ukraine.

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The South Ossetian government, meanwhile, accused Georgian forces of taking control of three villages on the edge of the breakaway region Monday after Russian troops withdrew. Acting Prime Minister Boris Chochiyev said a delegation was dispatched for negotiations.

“We are hoping to resolve this situation peacefully. And if that doesn’t work out, there are other methods,” he said.

Georgian Interior Ministry official Shota Utiashvili said Georgian police were in the villages, not soldiers. He said the villages were under Georgian control before the fighting began Aug. 7, and under the EU-brokered cease-fire Georgia has the right to station police there.

“We haven’t seized anything,” he said.