Georgia charges four Russian officers with spying

Georgia today charged four Russian officers with spying and a court was to decide later whether they should continue to be held in custody as relations between the two ex-Soviet neighbours plummeted to a new low.

Shota Khizanishvili, spokesman for the Interior Minister in Tbilisi, said the espionage charges were officially filed against four Russian military officers who were detained on Wednesday. A fifth officer, who served as a contract soldier, was released today, he said.