TBILISI, Aug 9 (AFP) - Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili late Nonday denounced alleged violations of his country's air space by Russian aircraft, adding to simmering tensions with Moscow over two separatist regions in the former Soviet republic.
The alleged intrusions into Georgian territory represented "serious violations of all international rules," Saakashvili told reporters.
Three Russian planes had violated Georgian air space since July 31, according to a report from the head of Georgia's border protection department, Badri Bitsadze.
"These are clearly deliberate actions undertaken by certain people and aimed at the illegal annexation and appropriation of (Georgian) territories," Saakashvili charged.
The Georgian leader said however that he intended to defend Georgia's territorial integrity using "political methods".
Saakashvili's comments come as his defense minister, Georgy Baramidze, visits Moscow in a bid to mend fences with the Russian leadership.
Baramidze said on Monday that he deplored the tension between both countries and that Georgia was ready to improve relations with its neighbour.
The two countries appeared on war footing early this month after Tbilisi threatened to open fire on vessels that "illegally" entered the Black Sea waters of Abkhazia and a top Russian lawmaker said he was shot at by Georgian troops while visiting the Georgian region of South Ossetia.
The Russian-backed region of Abkhazia gained de facto independence from Georgia in 1993 after bitter fighting and the exodus of some 250,000 Georgians. Moscow also supports South Ossetia, which broke away from Tbilisi in the early 1990s.