'UK stands in solidarity with Georgia'

Updated 23.23 Tue Aug 19 2008
Keywords: Saakashvili, war, tanks, troops, soldiers, fighting, ceasefire, Tbilisi, Medvedev, violence, conflict, Russia, Georgia

Foreign Secretary David Miliband has told Georgians that Britain's Government and its people "stood in solidarity" with them.

During a joint press conference with President Mikheil Saakashvili in the Georgian capital Tbilisi, both repeated demands for Russia to pull all troops out of the country.

"On several counts Russian behaviour over the last ten days has violated those principles" - David Miliband

Mr Miliband, who flew to Georgia from an emergency Nato meeting in Brussels, stated Russia "violated international law" by sending troops into Georgia, and that every day beyond the ceasefire deadline showed Moscow is not living up to its word.

"That is something very serious, not just for Georgia, it is very serious for Russia's reputation around the world. But the political consequences of this are over the more medium term, and Russia is finding itself isolated, even from some of its traditional allies," Mr Miliband said.

He continued: "The British policy is founded on very clear foundations, that the rule of force does not replace the rule of law, and the territorial integrity of sovereign nations is to be respected.

"On several counts Russian behaviour over the last ten days has violated those principles. It was striking to hear all Nato members talking about the need to ensure that aggression does not pay."

He said Russia needed to realise that the world had moved "decisively beyond the Soviet era" and "force is not a basis to redraw the map" of surrounding nations.

The Foreign Secretary added: "Russia wants to be a respected international player but it can only be so if it lives up to its responsibilities."

Meanwhile, President Saakashvili said Russia is trying to "strangle" the government in Georgia and cause panic among its citizens.

The Georgian leader said: "Russia has been after the demise of the Georgian government, undermining and for the destruction of the Georgian state. Their activities clearly show that they are after infrastructure. They want to strangle the government in Tbilisi."

He added: "They want to demoralise my people and put it into panic and they want to basically not only get rid of the Georgian government, but get rid of the idea, of all ideas of Georgia's independence and freedom."

In Brussels, the 26 member states which make up Nato said in a joint statement they were "seriously considering" the implications of Russia's actions, adding: "We have determined that we cannot continue with business as usual."

Nato vowed to strengthen ties with Georgia in the wake of the Russian invasion and agreed to set up a new Nato-Georgia Commission to foster closer relations with Tbilisi.

Earlier, Russia said its main withdrawal from Georgia would not occur for another three days. Colonel-General Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy head of the General Staff, said troops and tanks are "flowing slowly" over a "pressing need" to create new posts for peacekeepers.

A small number of tanks and armoured vehicles earlier left the town of Gori as Moscow closed its land border with Georgia and neighbouring Azerbaijan to citizens who are not from the CIS group of former Soviet states.

Fighting erupted in South Ossetia after Georgia tried to recapture the rebel region on August 7. In response, Russia mounted the biggest military deployment outside its borders since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.

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