Russia accused of Georgia killings

MOSCOW - Russia yesterday furiously denied an accusation from Georgia that Russia's army had intervened in the Abkhazia conflict and killed several of Tbilisi's soldiers in a missile attack in the rebel Black Sea region, writes Helen Womack.

The war of words could jeopardise peace talks due in Moscow this week between Boris Yeltsin, Georgia's Eduard Shevardnadze and Abkhazian and Caucasian leaders. Mr Shevardnadze was quoted as saying his military commanders had informed him that several Georgians were killed near Sukhumi by rockets fired from a Russian defence ministry laboratory.