U.S.'s Pompeo pledges support for Georgia, calls for Russia troop pullout

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo shakes hands with Georgia's Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili after delivering remarks at their Georgia Strategic Partnership meeting at the State Department in Washington, U.S., May 21, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday pledged deeper security and economic support for Georgia and called on Russia to withdraw its forces from the regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia under a 2008 ceasefire agreement.

Russia still has troops stationed in Georgia after a 2008 war over the breakaway region of South Ossetia, backing Georgia’s Abkhazia, which is also controlled by pro-Russian separatists.