Russia`s General Staff said on Thursday it was concerned by the type of cargoes the United States was airlifting to Georgia and said Russia`s Black Sea fleet would take commands only from the Russian President

Ukraine`s president Viktor Yushchenko had signed a decree requiring authorization for Russian warships to return to their base in Sevastopol, a Crimean port which is part of Ukraine.

Colonel-General Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy head of Russia`s general staff, told a news conference it was legitimate for Russian peacekeepers to be in the Georgian port town of Poti for intelligence operations.

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The General Staff had previously denied Russian troops were in Poti.

Reuters