Moscow, Tskhinvali, Georgia  - Russia will pull out on Wednesday from its checkpoints inside Georgia surrounding the breakaway region of South Ossetia, the head of the Russian peacekeeping forces said.

"We plan to complete the pull-out by the end of today," Marat Kulakhmetov, commander of Russian peacekeeping forces, was quoted by news agency Interfax as saying in the South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali.

He added six checkpoints were being dismantled, but did not mention troops remaining at posts outside Georgia's other separatist region of Abkhazia.

Moscow has until Friday to withdraw its forces from buffer zones in Georgia proper under an EU-brokered ceasefire agreement that ended its brief but violent war with Georgia in August.

An EU-observer mission in the border area will be watching to see if Russia meets its withdrawal commitment.

EU monitors and local media said that Russia had already begun dismantling the checkpoints and rolling out on Tuesday.

By Friday, the EU mission of 300 monitors is to replace the Russian presence in the buffer zones.

But Russia said it plans to keep 7,600 troops in each of the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, which it recognized as independent republics after the war.

A peace conference is set for October 15 in Geneva when the broader issue of Georgia's long-term security is to be debated. (dpa)