President Vladimir Putin of Russia and Georgia's Mr Eduard Shevardnadze differed in public yesterday about air raids in Georgia. But they agreed to set up a joint commission to look into the incident.
Georgia called Tuesday night's air raids on its Pankisi gorge an act of "undisguised aggression", but Mr Putin said they were more likely a clash with rebel groups.
"In talking about the apparent bombing of these villages by Russian planes we need to answer this question - what kind of bombings were these in which there were no victims?" Mr Putin said at a joint news conference.
Moscow denies its air strikes against Chechen rebels in the border region strayed into the territory of its southern neighbour.
The two presidents were in Moscow for the 10th anniversary of the Commonwealth of Independent States - a Russian-led grouping of 12 ex-Soviet states. But despite the occasion, neither leader seemed prepared to give ground over the incident.
"Indeed we had words about this unpleasant occurrence. Planes which flew from Russian territory bombed the territory of Georgia," Mr Shevardnadze said.
Relations between Russia and Georgia, never easy in the post-Soviet period, have been strained by Russian allegations that Tbilisi allows Chechen rebels to stay on its territory.
And it is not the first time Georgia has accused Russia of bombing its territory during Moscow's campaign against Chechen separatists.
Russia says the rebels use remote border areas of Georgia, which shares a 50 km frontier with Chechnya, as a staging ground for their activities. Moscow usually denies striking there, although it once acknowledged having bombed Georgia in error, after denying the incident for several days.
On this occasion Mr Putin concurred with Mr Shevardnadze's proposal to conduct an investigation. But he was quick to point out this was not an admission of guilt.
Welcoming the heads of 11 former Soviet republics to the Kremlin yesterday, Mr Putin called for closer integration among the countries that make up the Commonwealth of Independent States, formed 10 years ago when the Soviet Union was dissolved.
Mr Putin said recent world events had demonstrated the need for forging strong international partnerships. "The tragic events of September 11th showed how vulnerable a country is on its own, even a country that is powerful, economically and militarily."
In a joint declaration on Afghanistan, the summit participants praised the US-led military operation there, particularly the co-ordination of strikes with the northern-based anti-Taliban opposition, which Russia has long supported. The presidents also said the fight against terrorism should be conducted on "a comprehensive and long-term basis".