Tbilisi - Georgia and Russia made their first prisoner exchange on Tuesday as NATO leaders were set to meet in Brussels on the Ossetia war.

Russian officials at the Igoeti checkpoint, at the boundary between Georgian and Russian lines, handed over 13 Georgian prisoners of war and received 5 Russian servicemen in exchange.

It was the first handover of prisoners between combatants since the outbreak of the Ossetia war earlier this month.

The turnover had been planned for Monday but fell apart over accusations from both sides of procedural violations including incorrect names on POW lists.

The ongoing political tug-of-war between Moscow and Tbilisi was expected to hamper the exchange, observers said, as Russian war prisoners are one of the few levers the Georgian government has over Moscow.

Russian army troops remained fully in control of enclaves in Georgia's Gori and Poti regions on Tuesday, with forward troops continuing to improve their positions.

Russian armored columns were continuing to move at the edges and even out of the Gori enclave.

A Russian armored personnel carrier platoon on Monday ran a Georgian police checkpoint near Igoeti after ignoring Georgian claims the Russians had left their zone of control as set forward in a ceasefire agreement authored by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

A larger Russian armoured column also attempted to advance towards the Georgian town Borjomi, but upon meeting a Georgian police checkpoint turned around and returned to Gori.

Russian officials said the column's intent was to assist Georgians in fighting forest fires in the Borjomi region. Georgian media reported the Russian column's commander just got lost.

Russian forces were permitting Georgian civilian vehicles and foot traffic along most but not all roads in their sectors of control, but checked travelers for weapons.

Refugees were returning in small numbers both to the South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali and to the Georgian provincial town Gori on Tuesday.

A Russian clean-up effort in Tskhinvali reportedly was in full swing, with downed power lines being restrung and the city bread factory turning out loaves, Russia's Vesti television channel reported.

Ethnic Georgians were returning to Gori in small numbers as well, and the situation in the city generally was stable. Russian troops remained in the vicinity but were for the most part staying out of the city, eyewitnesses said.

Russia's General Staff on Tuesday repeated previous statements that it had begun removing troops from Georgia and returning them into South Ossetia.

Russian armour and infantry forces monitoring the Georgian road and rail network in the Russian zones of control remained in place, and on Tuesday were showing no signs of moving.

The diplomatic focus of the day was on Brussels where NATO's leadership was set to discuss the Ossetia conflict, and possible NATO responses to Russian moves in Georgia. (dpa)