EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM) said on Friday that it “observed a build-up of Russian Federation armed personnel along the South Ossetian Administrative Boundary Line.”

“The Mission has raised its concerns about this activity with the relevant Russian command structures,” the EUMM said in a statement on September 21. “The EUMM urges all sides to refrain from any activities that could destabilize the security and safety of the local population on either side of the Administrative Boundary Line.”

It also says that in recent days there have been claims about “a possible change in posture of Georgian security personnel” at the breakaway region’s administrative border, but it has not observed evidence to support these claims.

“The EU Monitoring Mission has been intensively engaged in monitoring and assessing these reports with the deployment of extra patrols and has been checking the situation with the relevant authorities. The Mission has not observed any evidence to support these claims. However, EUMM has further increased its patrolling to actively monitor the situation on the ground,” the mission said.

Leader of breakaway South Ossetia Leonid Tibilov claimed on September 18 that the Georgian Defense Ministry was setting up military fortifications in the areas adjacent to Akhalgori. On September 20 the breakaway region’s foreign ministry released a statement accusing the Georgian side of military build-up in areas close to the administrative boundary line.