Dmitry Medvedev gave his fundamental assessment of the situation in South Ossetia in a telephone conversation with President of the United States George W. Bush.

In the conversation it was stressed that the Georgian side had taken aggressive action against civilians and Russian peacekeepers. The consequences of the barbaric acts planned and implemented by the Georgian leadership are enormous: more than a thousand casualties, tens of thousands of refugees, mass destruction and what amounts to flouting the right for life of an entire people.

Russia is guided in these circumstances by a single concern, the immediate challenge of ending the violence, protecting the civilian population, the majority of which are Russian citizens, and the prompt restoration of peace. Within the framework of its peacekeeping mission and in accordance with the mandate given by the international community, Russia will resolve the problem of forcing the Georgian side to accept peace and of protecting the lives and dignity of its citizens, as required by the Constitution, the laws of the Russian Federation and the rules of any civilized country.

The President of Russia stressed that the only way out of the tragic crisis initiated by the Georgian leadership in Tbilisi is the withdrawal of its armed forces from the conflict zone, the return to the process of peace agreements and, most importantly, the signing of a legally binding agreement abjuring the use of force. The President expressed his hope that the U.S. and other countries interested in establishing stability and security in the Caucasus will act in a similar fashion.

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