Russia issues warning to Tbilisi

TBILISI/MOSCOW: Russia vowed yesterday to prevent its pro-Western neighbor Georgia from rearming and threatened nations who helped it with weapons, in a harsh warning timed to coincide with US Vice-President Biden's visit to Tbilisi.

Tensions between Russia and its former Soviet vassal are rising ahead of the first anniversary next month of their war.

"We will continue to prevent the re-arming of (Georgian President Mikheil) Saakashvili's regime and will take concrete measures against this," Russia's ITAR-TASS agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin as saying in an interview.