Georgia says Russia violates airspace, Russia denies

TBILISI, Aug 22 (Reuters) Georgia's Foreign Ministry said today a fighter jet flying from Russia violated Georgian airspace for second time this month yesterday, when it flew 5 km (3 miles) into Georgian territory.

A Russian defence spokesman immediately denied its plane had flown into Georgian territory yesterday.

''A Georgian anti-aircraft defence system tracked ... the violation of the Georgian state border and incursion into Georgian airspace from the Russian Federation,'' the Georgian Foreign Ministry said in a statement in English on its Web site.

But Russia's Defence Ministry chief spokesman, Vyacheslav Sedov, told Reuters: ''On the date mentioned by Georgia the planes of the Russian air force did not fly near to the Georgian border.'' Earlier this month an unexploded missile landed near a village in Georgia. Georgia accused Russia of flying into its airspace and dropping the missile, an accusation Russia has also denied.

Relations between Russia and former Soviet Georgia have been strained since a spy row last year.

REUTERS GT RN2033