Tbilisi Warns Moscow over South Ossetia

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said on July 10, ?certain forces in Russia? are interested in provoking armed conflict in South Ossetia.

?If the armed confrontation is renewed in South Ossetia, it will not be an internal [Georgian] conflict, it will be a problem between the two countries ? Georgia and Russia,? President Saakashvili said at a news briefing in Tbilisi.

?Russia is a vital partner for Georgia and we are open for cooperation, but entire Russian political elite must understand that Russia should also be ready for reciprocal step,? he added.

?I have a friendly relations with [Russian President] Vladimir Putin. However, certain forces in Russia still want to destabilize situation in South Ossetia and engage Georgia in an armed confrontation,? Mikheil Saakashvili said.

He condemned the draft of a statement of the Russian State Duma, which is the lower house of the parliament, over the situation in South Ossetia and described it as ?a provocative.?