Lavrov made the allegation at his annual press conference on Tuesday, saying "ISIL militants are using this hardly accessible territory to train, rest and replenish their supplies".
Long-running volatility in the Pankisi region previously led to Russia imposing visa restrictions on Georgian citizens in 2000. More recently, the area has been known as a hot spot for ISIL's recruitment of fighters to take part in the war in Syria.
Despite his claims about the ISIL base, Lavrov also said on Tuesday that he was ready to meet his Georgian counterpart to start restoring diplomatic ties, which were severed after the five-day war in 2008 over Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia.
- Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili responded to Lavrov's claims, denying the existence of an ISIL base inside Georgian borders and saying that his government was in full control of the Pankisi Gorge.
"A few people from this Gorge went to Syria to fight in the Islamic State, though a strict control is imposed on their entry back to [Georgia]," Kvirikashvili said.
"I can directly say that there is no terrorist threat in the Pankisi Gorge at the present time."
He also responded to Russia's recent move to simplify visa requirements for Georgian citizens, saying it was "a very positive decision"...
aljazeera.com
26/1/16
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