A peacekeeping battalion from the brigade has been stationed in the Kodori Gorge and the Gali district as part of the CIS collective peacekeeping contingent in the Georgia-Abkhazia conflict zone since December 2005.
"The withdrawal of peacekeepers [from Abkhazia] has been carried out in line with recent international agreements and an order issued by the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces," the press service said in a statement.
Abkhazia, along with the other breakaway Georgian region, South Ossetia, is recognized by Russia as an independent state.
Georgia attacked South Ossetia on August 7-8 in an attempt to regain control over the republic, which, along with Abkhazia, split from Georgia in the early 1990s. Russia then launched a military operation to "force Georgia to peace." The operation was concluded on August 12, with Russian forces deep in Georgia.
In accordance with an EU-brokered peace deal, Russia withdrew its forces from undisputed parts of Georgia ahead of an October 10 deadline. The peacekeepers were replaced by the EU monitoring mission in Georgia.
Under the same agreement Russia is pulling out most of its troops from Abkhazia with only about 4,000 military personnel to be stationed at a former Soviet base in Gudauta, according to Abkhazian authorities.
