London, Sept. 16 (ANI): NATO has reportedly served notice on the Kremlin that it would offer every support to Georgia''s ambitions to join the Western Alliance despite the continued presence of Russian troops in the country''s breakaway regions.

Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, NATO''s Secretary General, condemned the Russian occupation of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, even as Moscow continued to insist that both regions were no longer part of Georgian territory.

The Telegraph quoted him as saying that the launch of a new NATO-Georgia commission to co-ordinate Georgia''s bid would "function to enhance and accelerate our co-operation and integration."

Washington - The International Monetary Fund on Monday approved a 750-million-dollar emergency loan for Georgia to help stabilize the Caucasus republic's economy following last month's conflict wi

Amman- Jordan and Russia on Monday urged Israel to stop all practices that could "derail" the peace process, including settlement activity in the Palestinian territories, an official statement said.

The remark came during a meeting between Jordanian Foreign Minister Salah Bashir and the Russian Middle East envoy Alexander Saltanov.

London/Moscow - NATO chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer on Monday said Russian plan to keep troops in Georgia's breakaway regions was "unacceptable" and "hard to swallow."

He blamed oversights in an EU-brokered peace deal for not demanding the full withdrawal of troops to their bases in Russia before the war with Georgia last month.

The NATO secretary-general made the comments in an interview with the Financial Times shortly before he travelled to Tbilisi on Monday to show the alliances openness to including Georgia.

Brussels - The European Commission is ready to provide "up to 500 million euros" (714 million dollars) in additional aid to Georgia to help it recover from the war with Russia, EU External Affairs Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said Monday.

The European Union executive hopes that its proposal of a Stabilization and Growth Package for Georgia will be approved by EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on Monday.

The additional money comes on top of the roughly 100 million euros already being planned for Georgia this year, and it will add to any bilateral aid being provided by the EU's individual member states.

Moscow - Russian investigators ruled out a terrorist attack as the cause of a plane crash which killed 88 people on Sunday, saying an engine fault was responsible.

An Aeroflot Nord Boeing 737 passenger jet crashed near Russia's Ural mountains as it readied to land in the city of Prem on a flight from Moscow, killing all 88 people on board, including 21 foreign nationals, early Sunday morning.