Relations between Moscow and Tbilisi worsened dramatically over the weekend, as Georgia accused Russia of treachery and Russia's defense minister, Pavel Grachev, warned that Russian troops could intervene to protect Moscow's military holdings in the republic.


Abkhazian separatists provided the catalyst for the weekend's harsh exchange when they recaptured the town of Gagra in a surprise defeat for Georgia's National Guard and militia, who lost 100 dead and 160 wounded according to Georgian reports.


On Saturday, the Georgian leader, Eduard Shevardnadze, said that for the first time he had lost all hope of a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Abkhazia, and accused Russia of supporting the rebels.


"We were let down, treacherously deceived", Shevardnadze said, according to Reuters. "It is very bitter that, in some measure, representatives of Russia took part in this dirty affair".


"Russia legitimized the baseness and deceit of the Abkhazian leaders".


Shevardnadze was the victim of a mock attack by an unmarked MI-24 combat helicopter as he flew around the battle zone on Saturday. His own helicopter was later fired on by a gunboat, forcing him to turn back from the area.


Georgia's State Council reacted to the defeat in Gagra by passing a declaration Saturday that it intended to seize Russian military hardware based in the republic.


"We have been dragged into this war and now we need this equipment to wage it", said Jaba Ioselani, a member of the State Council and the leader of Georgia's Mekhedroni, or Horsemen, militia.


Grachev replied Sunday, saying that any attempt to take over Russian bases could "provoke a sharp aggravation of the situation and an armed clash with Russian armed forces military units, who have been ordered by me to prevent a forcible seizure of military and housing facilities".


Moscow has taken an increasingly active role as a mediator in the Abkhazian conflict. On Saturday, President Boris Yeltsin raised the stakes from mediation with a vague threat to take "appropriate measures" to defend Russian nationals caught up in the fighting.


On Sunday, local journalists said that Shevardnadze addressed thousands of people at a rally in Sukhumi, Reuters reported.


The Georgian leader accused "reactionary forces in the Russian parliament" of helping to stir up conflict in the region.


He said Georgia would not give up in the fight for Gagra and called on people to take part in parliamentary elections on Sunday.


The conflict in Abkhazia, a lush region of Georgia along the Black Sea coast, began in mid-August when Georgian troops occupied Sukhumi in an effort to put down moves toward independence by the region's minority Muslim population.


Contacted by telephone in Gadauta, a spokesman for the Abkhazian parliament said that peace could yet be achieved, but only if "all troops answering to the Georgian State Council leave Abkhazia".


He said that Georgian aircraft had made 10 bombing sorties against Gagra since it was captured, hitting hotels, bridges and other buildings. Six people died in the raids on Saturday and Sunday, he said.


The spokesman denied Georgian claims that Russian troops had given military aid to the Abkhazian fighters.


He said all Abkhazian material had been captured in battle, including two tanks, eight armored personnel carriers, three howitzers and numerous automatic rifles seized over the weekend.


"The only thing we ask of the Russians is to defend women and children against the bombing", he said. "The Russians have promised to help us in this".


The war in Abkhazia has claimed hundreds of lives over the last seven weeks and has radicalized many of Georgia's neighbors to the north, who are sympathetic to the Abkhazian cause and have sent volunteers to fight for them.


Itar-Tass said that during his tour of the battle zone, Shevardnadze said the conflict could cause him to step down as Georgia's acting leader.


"Events are developing in such a way that not much depends on what I do", he said. "My possible resignation is not excluded".