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| Russia hits back at G7 criticism | Russia hits back at G7 criticism |
| (21 minutes later) | |
| Criticism by the G7 group of nations of Russia's actions in Georgia is biased and groundless, Russian officials have said. | Criticism by the G7 group of nations of Russia's actions in Georgia is biased and groundless, Russian officials have said. |
| The G7 was trying to justify Georgian aggression towards the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Russia's Foreign Ministry said. | |
| The G7 had accused Russia of breaking international law by recognising the two provinces as independent. | The G7 had accused Russia of breaking international law by recognising the two provinces as independent. |
| Russia and Georgia fought a brief war earlier this month over the issue. | Russia and Georgia fought a brief war earlier this month over the issue. |
| The ministry accused the G7 of making "baseless assertions about Russia undermining Georgia's territorial integrity". | |
| "This step is biased and is aimed at justifying the aggressive actions of Georgia," the ministry said. | |
| The new statement comes a day after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin stoked up the war of words with the US. | |
| He told CNN there was a "suspicion" that the Georgian conflict was created by someone in the US in the hope of benefitting one of the candidates in the presidential elections. | |
| The White House dismissed Mr Putin's assertions as "not rational". | |
| Meanwhile, officials in the Moscow-backed South Ossetian government have been quoted as saying Russia intends to absorb the breakaway province within "several years". | |
| Parliamentary speaker Znaur Gassiyev said the move had been agreed at high-level talks in Moscow earlier this week, the Associated Press reported. | |
| The Kremlin has not yet commented on the claims. |