Russia said Saturday that it has suspended plans for further withdrawal of its troops from Georgia amid worsening relations between the two neighbors. Tensions escalated after the arrest in Georgia on Wednesday of four Russian military officers accused of spying. Russia has been gradually withdrawing equipment and troops from its two military bases in Georgia, which it plans to close completely by the end of 2008. Gen. Alexander Baranov, the commander of the North Caucasus military district, told reporters in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don that Moscow was suspending planning for further withdrawals. Baranov drew a direct connection between the decision and the heightening tension, and blamed the Georgians for the decision. \"Why should we run ahead of the steam engine that they themselves have placed in our path?\" he asked. The agreement to withdraw Russian forces from Georgia, reached last year after hard-fought negotiations, was a victory for pro-Western President Mikhail Saakashvili, who has sought to reduce Russian influence. Baranov said Mosow already had withdrawn the equipment and troops set to be pulled out of Georgia this year. Since May, convoys carrying heavy equipment and weapons from the bases had been leaving on a regular basis. Much of the equipment is being shipped to Russia\'s military base at Gyumri, Armenia. (AP)