Polish president in Georgia shooting row

Polish President Lech Kaczynski has accused Russian soldiers of shooting toward his motorcade in Georgia, calling on the EU and NATO to "draw consequences" from the incident.

"I know from their cries that they were Russian. I also know from the president of Georgia, there are Russian checkpoints in this region," Mr Kaczynski said after the shooting on Sunday (23 November), Polish agency PAP reports.

"The trip along this dark road taught me a lot. I want to appeal to our friends in the union, in the US and also to NATO countries that don''t belong to the EU, to draw consequences from this before it is too late."

The French EU presidency said its embassy in Georgia is looking into the events, which took place at 17:40 local time near the border with the Akhalgori district - a disputed patch of ground near the Russian-held South Ossetia region.

The Polish head of state was travelling in a convoy with Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili to visit a refugee camp when they diverted toward Akhalgori, stopping about 30 metres from the border and stepping out of their limousines.

"The second we got out of the car there were a few salvos, I think into the air. First, I looked to see what was happening, then I walked over to President Saakashvili, we walked back slowly and changed cars. I don''t think we were in any danger," Mr Kaczynski said.

The Russian foreign ministry has denied that the incident took place. "This is a real provocation. This is not for the first time when such things are happening: they stage everything themselves and then accuse the Russian or Ossetian sides," Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov told Interfax.

A South Ossetian security chief, Boris Attojev, told Russian newswire ITAR-TASS that his soldiers stopped the Polish-Georgian convoy and explained that the border was closed, after which the motorcade left peacefully.

The Polish press questioned Mr Kaczynski and Mr Saakashvili whether the incident had been staged, noting that a bus full of reporters was sent to the head of the convoy just before it arrived at the checkpoint.

"OSCE observers enter this district. And the Russians don''t usually do this [open fire]," Mr Saakashvili explained.

President Kaczynski was in Georgia to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Rose Revolution, which brought down the pro-Russian government of Eduard Sheverdnadze and installed Mr Saakashvili.

Mr Kaczynski opposes the EU''s decision to resume partnership treaty talks with Russia despite the Russian occupation of Akhalgori, which was supposed to be back under Georgian control under an EU-brokered ceasefire.

The Polish government agreed to the EU-Russia talks however, and has in the past criticised President''s Kaczynski''s adventurism regarding the Georgia conflict.

The Rose Revolution celebrations were muted this year compared to previous festivals, with President Saakashvili''s popularity having fallen since the war.