PRESS RELEASE

On August 13, a telephone conversation between Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov and United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice took place at the American side's initiative.

Lavrov answered a number of questions from the US Secretary of State in connection with the situation in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, giving explanations on the essence of the agreed plan for resolving the conflicts. The Minister strongly rejected insinuations of Russia's "non-observance" of the principles of settlement contained in the Medvedev-Sarkozy accords.

August 14, 2008