Shots fired at Georgian and Polish presidents

Gunfire broke out yesterday on the South Ossetian de facto border after a convoy carrying the Georgian and Polish Presidents approached, forcing them to turn back, officials said.

A spokeswoman for Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said Russian troops manning a checkpoint on the boundary since a five-day war in August opened fire when the convoy approached.

The spokeswoman was not present at the scene, just south of the town of Akhalgori.

A witness travelling with Saakashvili told Reuters that uniformed men who appeared to be South Ossetians fired shots into the air when officials began getting out of their cars.

Both Russia and South Ossetia strongly denied involvement.