Ban Ki-moon worries about Russia-Georgia conflict and calls for cessation of hostilities.

　　Recently, the contradiction between Russia and Georgia on the issue of South Ossetia has deepened, and the two sides are at loggerheads. The picture shows the Russian military deploying in the relevant areas.

Putin arrived in North Ossetia on the 9th to visit South Ossetian refugees who fled here.

　　Ban Ki-moon worries about Russia-Georgia conflict.

　　Calling for cessation of hostilities, Georgian troops began to withdraw from South Ossetia and asked the United States to mediate the conflict.

　　Call for a cessation of hostilities

　　Georgian troops began to withdraw from South Ossetia and asked the United States to mediate the conflict.

　　On the 9th, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued a statement through a spokesman, calling on all parties to the conflict in Georgia to immediately stop hostilities and settle disputes peacefully.

　　Ban Ki-moon said in his statement that he was shocked by the escalation of the conflict in Georgia and the huge loss of people and property in South Ossetia and other regions.

　　Ban Ki-moon called on all parties to the conflict to immediately stop hostilities and seek a peaceful solution through negotiations without delay. He said that he welcomed the international community to help all parties to resolve disputes, and stressed that only peaceful means can solve the conflict permanently.

　　According to Xinhua News Agency, Georgia said on the 10th that it had begun to withdraw its troops from South Ossetia. Georgian government spokesman Udi Ashvili said that all Georgian troops have now withdrawn from South Ossetia.

　　Russia needs to verify Georgia’s statement

　　Georgian State Minister for Unification Affairs responsible for mediating the conflict between Abkhazia and South Ossetia Timur Yakobashvili said on the morning of 10th that Georgian troops had withdrawn from Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia.

　　Alexander Lomaya, secretary of Georgia’s National Security Council, held a telephone press conference with the media later that day, saying that Georgian troops had "almost left South Ossetia". He said that Georgia has asked US Secretary of State condoleezza rice to mediate the conflict. Georgia has close ties with the United States and hopes to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

　　Russian Deputy Foreign Minister grigori Carracin said that Russia needs to verify Georgian claims. Russia said on the 9th that Russian peacekeepers who entered South Ossetia had taken control of Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia.

　　Georgian President Calls for an Immediate Ceasefire

　　Georgian President mikhail saakashvili made a speech on the same day, calling for an immediate ceasefire. He also criticized Russia for trying to "destroy" Georgia.

　　Dozens of Russian main battle tanks and armored vehicles entered South Ossetia on the 9th to reinforce the troops that had previously entered. At the same time, cars carrying South Ossetian refugees are heading in the opposite direction to North Ossetia, Russia. On the same day, the Russian Air Force expanded its attack on military targets in Georgia. In the town of Gori, Georgia, Russian bombers launched five air strikes on nearby military facilities.

　　Gori Town is the gateway to South Ossetia, where Georgian troops set up military facilities such as military assembly points, military supply points and field hospitals.

　　Georgia

　　Putin attacked Georgia’s "bloody adventure"

　　According to Xinhua News Agency, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on the 9th that the only way to calm the conflict in South Ossetia is for Georgia to withdraw its troops immediately.

　　Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited the Russian North Ossetia region near South Ossetia on the same day and criticized Georgia for launching military adventures.

　　Putin: counterattack is "completely legal"

　　Putin arrived in Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia, on the 9th to visit South Ossetian refugees who fled here.

　　Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin criticized the Georgian army for "ethnic cleansing" in South Ossetia, saying that the Russian army’s counterattack against the Georgian army was "completely legal".

　　"Georgia launched a bloody military adventure, hoping to drag other countries into the conflict and take the opportunity to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization," Putin said. "We call on the Georgian authorities to immediately stop attacking South Ossetia."

　　At the same time, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister grigori Carracin listed two preconditions for a ceasefire: first, Georgian troops will be withdrawn from the conflict zone, and second, an agreement will be signed immediately to commit not to use force.

　　Also on the 10th, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin who returned from the Russian Republic of North Ossetia in Moscow, Russia, and listened to Putin’s report on the situation in South Ossetia.

　　Putin said that most of the houses in Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia, and nearby residential areas were destroyed, and Russia should help local residents return to their hometowns and rebuild their homes. He said that due to the huge local losses, the Russian Ministry of Finance has planned to allocate 10 billion rubles (about 400 million US dollars) to help local residents.

　　Russian reaction

　　According to Xinhua News Agency, although the Security Council could not reach an agreement, the office of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued a statement on the 9 th: "The Secretary-General called on all parties to immediately stop hostilities and seek a peaceful solution through negotiations without delay."

　　Ban Ki-moon: Resolving conflicts through negotiations

　　Ban Ki-moon called on all parties to the conflict to immediately stop hostilities and seek a peaceful solution through negotiations without delay. He said that he welcomed the international community to help the parties resolve their disputes, and stressed that only through negotiation can the conflict be solved permanently.

　　Ban Ki-moon said that in order to solve the South Ossetia issue, all armed parties without authorization from relevant agreements should leave the conflict zone immediately.

　　At the same time, the EU issued a statement on the same day, calling on Russia to respect Georgia’s sovereignty. The statement said that Russia’s attack on Georgia "may affect the relationship between the EU and Russia". French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner will go to the conflict area and put forward the EU’s proposal to resolve the conflict.

　　Security Council: Third meeting for discussion.

　　Since the outbreak of the conflict in South Ossetia, the Security Council has met twice to discuss this matter, but it has not been able to reach an agreement. The Security Council held consultations again on the afternoon of the 9th, but still failed to make any statement.

　　Jean-Graule, the rotating president of the Security Council this month and the Belgian Permanent Representative to the United Nations, held consultations with all parties, but Graule said after the meeting that it was difficult for the Security Council to reach an agreement on the conflict in South Ossetia in order to issue a statement, given the latest developments and differences of opinion within the Security Council. The draft statement, drafted by the Belgian side, called on all parties to "exercise restraint and avoid further use of force".

　　Vitaly Churkin, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations, said that he thought it was difficult for the Security Council to adopt a "meaningful" statement at this time. He demanded that Georgia immediately withdraw from South Ossetia and sign a document that promised not to use force in South Ossetia.

　　international community

　　America: This is a "dangerous" move.

　　According to Xinhua News Agency, US President Bush telephoned Medvedev on the same day to discuss the situation in South Ossetia. Bush called Russia’s attack on targets in Georgia "dangerous" and called on Russia to stop air strikes immediately.

　　Medvedev said that the conflict was caused by Georgia, so Georgian troops must withdraw first. The United States believes that Russia "excessively" uses force. A senior American official who asked not to be named said that Russia used excessive force against Georgia. However, the official ruled out the possibility of the United States providing military assistance to Georgia at this stage.

　　The official said that Russia used a strategic bomber with a bomb load of 54,000 pounds (24.5 tons) to launch ballistic missiles at Georgia, "far beyond the appropriate range".

　　He also believes that Russia obviously does not want to see Georgia become a member of NATO, so it took the opportunity to severely punish Georgia. "From the perspective of Russia, this is understandable, but the United States cannot accept it."

　　According to figures provided by the Russian side on the 9th, the conflict has caused about 2,000 deaths and more than 30,000 refugees fled from South Ossetia to North Ossetia.

　　South Ossetia

　　South Ossetia, an autonomous prefecture in Georgia, had a fierce conflict with the central government of Georgia in the early 1990 s because of its demand for independence. In 1992, the leaders of Russia, Georgia, South Ossetia and North Ossetia reached a ceasefire agreement. Russia has a peacekeeping force in South Ossetia. However, in recent years, armed conflicts between South Ossetia and the Georgian central government have occurred from time to time.

　　South Ossetia borders the Russian Republic of North Ossetia. Statistics show that most of the more than 70,000 residents in South Ossetia hold Russian passports. After the conflict broke out in South Ossetia, some troops of the Russian 58th Army entered South Ossetia to help Russian peacekeeping troops stationed in the conflict area.

Editor: Zhang Renhe