Abkhaz leader Sergei Bagapsh said he had ordered 1,000 troops to the Tbilisi-controlled upper Kodori Gorge.

“We are ready to enforce order and go further if there is resistance from the Georgian side,” Reuters quoted Bagapsh as saying.

“We are coordinating our actions with Russia, our biggest friend,” he said. “I have asked Russian peacekeepers to reinforce their military presence on the Georgian-Abkhaz border.”

The Georgian side reported earlier today that the gorge had been shelled.

In a statement the Georgian government said Russia was encouraging Abkhazia to attack Georgian forces in the upper Kodori Gorge.

In the statement the Georgian government called on the Abkhaz side “not to yield to the Russian pressure” and “not to get involved in the Russian military adventure.” It has also called for immediate talks.

Bagapsh, however, said: “contacts with the current leadership of Georgia are impossible.”