Berlin - A majority of Germans believe Russia could stake further territorial claims along its borders, following its military incursion into Georgian territory last month, according to a poll published Tuesday.

The poll carried out by the Emnid institute found that 60 per cent of German citizens regarded the threat of further territorial claims as "realistic," whereas 34 per cent saw the incursion into Georgia as a one-off event.

Germans have some comprehension of Russian anxieties, with 63 per cent understanding that Russia feels threatened by plans to station elements of a US anti-missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic.

Moscow - Diplomats from Russia's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said they were pleased with a European Union decision not to impose sanctions on the Kremlin over Georgia.

Officials speaking to the Interfax news agency said the EU's choice at a crisis summit on Monday to ask Russia to remove troops in Georgia, rather than attempt to exert economic or political pressure, was a sign a majority of EU nations were seeking "a path of partnership" with Russia.

The moderate EU position on Georgia would assist "both sides in mutually-advantageous cooperation," a Foreign Ministry spokesman said.

Brussels - Georgian Prime Minister Lado Gurgenidze thanked the European Union for its support Tuesday and called for closer ties with Brussels.

"What Georgia needs is to consolidate the gains we have made through tightened integration (with the EU)," Gurgenidze said after talks in Brussels with the EU's external affairs commissioner, Benita Ferrero-Waldner.

The meeting came a day after EU leaders reached out to Georgia by promising to start negotiations on a free-trade area and on granting visa facilitation to Georgian nationals.

At their emergency summit, EU heads of state and government also threatened to suspend talks on a new partnership agreement with Russia because of its refusal to comply with the six-point peace plan.

Beijing - China and Russia have shown interest in buying stakes in Germany's state-owned railway, Deutsche Bahn AG, in its initial public offering this year, the German finance minister said Tuesd

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