GEORGIA TO GET RUSSIAN WARSHIPS.

After being rebuffed by Moscow when it argued that it should share in the division of the former Soviet Black Sea Fleet, it seems that Georgia is going to receive at least a few Russian warships after all. A Russian military delegation headed by Col. Gen. Sergei Mayev, the head of the Defense Ministry’s Main Armament Directorate, has been visiting Tbilisi. On October 14 the group met with Georgian president Eduard Shevardnadze, who was reported to have reminded them that Georgia was neglected when the fleet was divided. He also noted that nearly 80 percent of the Soviet military equipment once stationed in the republic had been repatriated to Russia. (Segodnya, October 15)

Yesterday Mayev announced that Russia was getting ready to transfer to the Georgian Navy "a certain number of our warships" as soon as President Boris Yeltsin approved the decision. While he would not specify the number or type of vessels involved, other sources in Tbilisi said that 4 ships would be turned over. The Russian delegation indicated that Russia was prepared to help Georgia build up both its navy and air force. (Russian media, October 16)

Kazakhstan’s Government Reshuffled.