Cease-fire proposed as Russia bombs Georgia

TBILISI, Georgia -- Georgia's president says he has signed an international-brokered proposal for a cease-fire with Russia in their conflict over the breakaway province of South Ossetia.
President Mikheil Saakashvili said Monday that the proposal would be taken to Moscow by the French and Finnish foreign ministers.
"We are trying to stop this as soon as possible," Saakashvili said during a conference call with Western journalists Monday.
Saakashvili claimed that Georgian troops had downed "18 or 19" Russian warplanes, killed hundreds of Russian troops and repelled a Russian assault on the Georgian city of Gori.
A Russian defense ministry spokesman denied that Russian troops had entered Georgian territory outside of the breakaway regions and that only four planes had been lost.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, the president of the European Union, would visit the capitals of both Russia and Georgia Tuesday in his diplomatic efforts to end the fighting, Saakashvili said.
Sarkozy's office earlier confirmed he would travel to Moscow to meet with Russian President Dimitri Medvedev, but it has not made any public announcement about also stopping in Tbilisi.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb were to make their way to Moscow on Monday evening after spending Sunday and Monday in Tbilisi meeting with Georgian officials.
Stubb said they had a proposal which included a "forceful way forward" to a cease-fire and withdrawal plan.
"I agreed with every point of it," Saakashvili said. "They are going now back to Moscow trying to convince the Russians to take the offer."
A Georgian National Security Council official said the document signed by Saakashvili called for an unconditional cease-fire by both sides, a non-use of force agreement, a withdrawal of all Russian troops from Georgian territory, including the South Ossetia region, and provisions for international peacekeeping and mediation.
Sources close to the delegation said the French and Finnish ministers, along with their Georgian counterpart, would visit Gori Monday afternoon to see first-hand damage caused by Russian airstrikes.
Swarms of Russian jets launched new raids on Georgia Monday.
In the latest attacks Russian jets hit a radar on the outskirts of the Georgian capital, bombed an airfield and also targeted the Black Sea port of Poti, inflicting no casualties, Georgian officials told The Associated Press.
Georgia declared a cease-fire around the contested region of South Ossetia on Sunday, but Russian officials told AP Georgian forces were not observing it.
Russian Maj.-Gen. Marat Kulakhmetov said that Georgian forces continued shelling Russian positions overnight and conducted a bombing run in the area.
South Ossetia's capital, Tskhinvali, lay in smoldering ruins after four days of fighting between Georgian and Russian forces. Each side accused the other of killing large numbers of civilians. Russia said at least 2,000 people had been killed in Tskhinvali.
Georgia began withdrawing its forces from Tskhinvali early Sunday.
Meanwhile, Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin Monday criticized the United States for airlifting Georgian troops from Iraq.
Putin said that the U.S. move would hamper efforts to solve Russia's conflict with Georgia, AP reported.
The U.S. military has started flying 2,000 Georgian troops home from Iraq after Georgia recalled them.

Fears of a second front

Georgia said a Russian general in Abkhazia, the other breakaway province, issued an ultimatum Monday to its forces nearby to disarm or face Russian troops moving into Georgian-controlled territory, AP reported.
U.N. officials had earlier expressed concern about violence in Abkhazia after Abkhaz forces launched air and artillery strikes on Georgian troops Sunday.
On Sunday, bombing was reported in the Georgian city of Zugdidi, south of the Abkhaz border.
The U.S. ambassador to the U.N., Zalmay Khalilzad, told the U.N. Security Council that a Russian-backed military operation in Abkhazia was under way.

Tussle for disputed territory

Georgia, a pro-Western ally of the U.S., is intent on asserting its authority over South Ossetia and Abkhazia, both of which have strong Russian-backed separatist movements.
The situation in South Ossetia escalated rapidly from Thursday night, when Georgia said it launched an operation into the region after artillery fire from separatists killed 10 people. It accused Russia of backing the separatists.
South Ossetia, which has a population of about 70,000, is inside Georgia but has an autonomous government. Many South Ossetians support unification with North Ossetia, which would make them part of Russia.
Russia supports the South Ossetian government, has given passports to many in South Ossetia, and calls them Russian citizens.