During talks in Batumi on 18 March that lasted over three hours, Mikheil Saakashvili and Aslan Abashidze reached an agreement under which the latter will comply with key demands made by Saakashvili on 14 March, in return for which Saakashvili pledged that the \"restrictions\" imposed on transporting goods across Adjar territory will be lifted at midnight on 18 March. The most important of those demands is to ensure that voting in Adjaria in the 28 March national parliamentary election is free and fair. Abashidze also undertook to have weapons distributed to the population earlier this week collected. The two sides agreed to the appointment of a Georgian presidential official who will monitor revenues from customs and the transit of goods across Adjar territory. Both leaders sought to play down the tensions of recent days, which Saakashvili described as \"a misunderstanding,\" adding that \"conflict\" between Tbilisi and Batumi is out of the question. (RFE/RL)