Georgia ‘breaks Russian spy ring’

A column of Russian armoured vehicles travel on the Gori-Tbilisi road 22 August 2008Georgia and Russia fought a brief war in August 2008 over South Ossetia
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Georgia says it has dismantled a major Russian spy ring and arrested 13 suspects.

The suspects, including four Russian citizens and Georgian military officers, fed sensitive information to Moscow, the interior ministry said.

Georgia and Russia fought a brief war in August 2008.

Interior ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili told AFP: “This is a huge deal in terms of Georgia securing its military intelligence.”

He also said that the arrests were a big blow to the GRU, Russian military intelligence.

The 2008 conflict saw Russian forces pour into the country to repel a Georgian attempt to retake South Ossetia, a region that had declared independence from Georgia and was recognised by Russia.

In 2006 Georgia arrested four Russian military officers on espionage charges. The four were eventually released and returned to Russia.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

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