Clinton vows deeper defence ties with Georgia

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced plans Tuesday to help Georgia improve its defences with helicopter upgrades and military training programmes, nearly four years after its war with Russia. Clinton has used her two-day visit to this Black Sea port to assure
Georgians of unwavering US support for its territorial integrity and to call on Russia to pull back troops in two breakaway Georgian regions that were the focus of the 2008 war. She also cautioned Georgian leaders that the country would be judged by "the quality of its democracy," and upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections would be a crucial indicator of the progress the country has made. She urged Georgians not to be distracted by Russian military manoeuvres planned in the autumn, when they go to the polls to elect a new parliament. "Yes, there will be military manoeuvres but the really important events in the fall will occur inside Georgia and the people of Georgia cast their votes," she said.