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The message points out, among other things, that the successful progress of the anti-terrorist operation in Chechnya has forced the remnants of the militants to settle in Georgia where, with the connivance of the Georgian authorities, they feel free and comfortable and continue to receive military, financial and other assistance from outside. This is happening despite the fact that beginning in 1999 Russia has repeatedly offered Tbilisi the establishment of close interaction between the special and border services of the two countries in order to erect a solid barrier against the militants on the Russian-Georgian border, to provide the necessary help in preventing bandit armed actions by non-Georgian units against contiguous Russian regions. No constructive reaction to these proposals was forthcoming.

The much-touted “anti-crime operation” of the Georgian security forces and troops in the Pankisi Gorge has not and could not have yielded any concrete results considering the way it was prepared and conducted. The Chechen militants and international terrorists knew about the operation in advance and merely moved to a different location.

Mr Putin wrote that there is every reason to speak about a flagrant violation of the UN Security Council’s Anti-Terrorist Resolution 1373 by Tbilisi which is binding on all the states.

In connection with this, Russia may be forced, under resolution 1368 of the UN Security Council passed in response to the barbaric terrorist actions in September of last year in the US, to exercise its inalienable right to individual or collective self-defence in accordance with the UN Charter. This is not about actions aimed at undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country or replacing its political regime.

The point is that in the event the Georgian leadership fails to take concrete measures to destroy the terrorists and its territory continues to be used for terrorist activities, Russia, in strict compliance with international law, will take adequate measures to counter the terrorist threat, said the message sent to the UN Secretary General, and the leaders of the permanent members of the UN Security Council and the OSCE.

The day before President Putin discussed the situation on the Russian-Georgian border with the heads of the security and military agencies, and a week earlier he sent a special message to President Eduard Shevardnadze of Georgia setting forth his views on the ways of resolving the crisis situation.