POTI, Georgia (AP):

Russian forces dug trenches and built long-term fortifications in key areas of Georgia yesterday, yet rolled columns of tanks north towards home elsewhere, picking and choosing with military precision exactly how their nation would comply with the terms of an EU-brokered peace accord. A top Russian general said it could be 10 days before the bulk of the troops return to Russia.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has promised that his forces would pull back as far as separatist Ossetia and a surrounding zone by today, Russian troops appeared to be in no hurry, even settling down in strategic spots, raising concerns about whether Moscow is aiming for a lengthy occupation of its pro-Western neighbour.

The war in a small country straining to escape Moscow's influence has sent tensions between Russia and the West to some of their highest levels since the 1991 break-up of the Soviet Union.