Georgian leader ready to meet Putin over mystery missile

TBILISI (AFP) - President Mikheil Saakashvili said yesterday he was ready to meet Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to defuse an escalating crisis between the two countries after a mystery missile hit Georgia earlier this week.

"I am in favour of a constructive meeting with the Russian president in order to settle all problems in a constructive way," Rustavi 2 television network quoted Saakashvili as saying during a meeting with Georgian students.

"We're not at war with Russia," he said. "We want good neighbourly relations and to cooperate with this country."

Georgia alleges that a Russian plane engaged in a missile strike on its territory Monday, amid angry denials from Moscow.

The 4.8-metre (15.7-foot) missile landed in a field some 50 kilometres (30 miles) from the Georgian capital.

It did not explode and caused no injuries, but Saakashvili accused Russia of deliberately firing on Georgia, raising the stakes in already tense relations between the pro-Western country and its Soviet-era master.

Saakashvili said on Friday that his country's armed forces were "ready to fight off any attack.

"But we also want to act responsibly," he added.