Length: 2:28
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Michael's prepared piece on the destruction of the railway bridge. He finds the firing cable that was used to connect to the detonator device and follows it to the protected site where Russian soldiers sheltered from the blast. Georgians are already working to clear the bridge debris.
FREDRICKA
WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Russia has signed the truce
with Georgia today, but at last report Russian tanks
are still patrolling, not pulling out. Russian's
foreign minister says there will be no full
withdrawal without new security measures. Well, today
Georgia is blaming the Russians for setting fires in
a national park as well. That's the source of
Georgian spring water exports. And as Michael Ware
shows us, the Russians have bombed an important
bridge.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Despite the signing
of a cease-fire agreement between Georgia and Russia,
it appears clear that the Russian military here in
Georgian territory continues to flex its muscle. Not
only have we been witnessing the ongoing presence of
Russian armored elements just outside the Georgian
city of Gori, but where I'm standing now is on a
destroyed railway bridge that the Russian military
brought down.
So this is an electric firing cable that leads from
the blast site somewhere over in this direction. And
if we follow it, we'll find where the Russians were
positioned when they detonated the explosion. And
when we follow the cord, we found that it ends here,
behind this culvert not far from the bridge. This is
clearly where the Russian soldiers were with their
detonating device as they set off the explosion. And,
indeed, what do we find? But a Russian cigarette
butt.
As workers above me are feverishly trying to clear
the tangled wreckage of the train line, the Georgian
government says the destruction of this rail line
that carries oil to the key port city of Poti on the
Black Sea coast have broken that agreement.
GIORGI BARAMIDZE, GEORGIAN VICE PRIME MINISTER: By
doing this, Russians make not only Georgia suffer but
Armenia, Azerbaijan, even companies like BP and
others that are transporting oil using this
particular railway.
WARE: And even though there are few, if any, real
military responses that can be made either by the
west or by Georgia itself, the Georgian vice prime
minister said that his country was ready and willing
to fight again against the Russians if it proves
necessary.
Michael Ware, CNN, on the outskirts of
Gori.