TBLISI, Georgia (CNN) -- Georgia's president said Friday that his country is under attack by Russian tanks and warplanes, and he accused Russia of targeting civilians as tensions over the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia appeared to boil over into full-blown conflict.

"All day today, they've been bombing Georgia from numerous warplanes and specifically targeting (the) civilian population, and we have scores of wounded and dead among (the) civilian population all around the country," President Mikhail Saakashvili told CNN in an exclusive interview.

"This is the worst nightmare one can encounter," he said.

Asked whether Georgia and Russia were now at war, he said, "My country is in self-defense against Russian aggression. Russian troops invaded Georgia."

About 150 Russian armored vehicles have entered South Ossetia, Saakashvili said, and Georgian forces had shot down two Russian aircraft.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meanwhile said Moscow had received reports that villages in South Ossetia were being ethnically cleansed, according to Reuters.com.

"We are receiving reports that a police of ethnic cleansing was being conducted in villages in South Ossetia, the number of refugees is climbing, the panic is growing, people are trying to save their lives," he was reported saying.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, quoted by the Russian news agency Interfax, said Russians had died because of Georgia's operations.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/08/08/georgia.ossetia/index.html

Includes photos and videos

Georgian President speaks,

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/08/08/georgia.ossetia/index.html#cnnSTCVideo

Yakobashvili said Georgian forces have shot down four Russian combat planes over Georgian territory. He gave no details. Russia's Defense Ministry denied an earlier Georgia report about one Russian plane downed and has had no immediate comment on the latest claim.

Yakobashvili said that one Russian plane had dropped a bomb on the Vaziani military base near the Georgian capital, but no one was hurt.

More than 1,000 U.S. Marines and soldiers were at the base last month to teach combat skills to Georgian troops. Georgia has about 2,000 troops in Iraq, making it the third-largest contributor to coalition forces after the U.S. and Britain.

The White House on Friday urged Russia and Georgia to peacefully resolve their dispute over South Ossetia.

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Georgia has called for an immeadiate return of its troops from Iraq.

Watch how Bush stands with his allies!

That's not going to happen!!
Not against Russia. There's nothing the US military can do!

Where do we go from here?

We've been draining our military (for good or ill is not part of this) for the last few years. Putin wants a return of the power and respect the Soviet Union had, and the people love him for it. China has a large enough military to change the balance in any conflict, but what would they gain from it?

I assume that Georgia is a member of the UN. Where does this stand on that? Is it "legal" for Russia to invade?

It's in our best interest to have Russia bogged down in conflicts just as it is in their interest to see us tied up in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A child playing a simple game of Risk can see the benefit of having other players weakened by engaging in conflict with each other.

It's all a matter of balance.

Georgia is a former part of the Soviet Union, situated between Turkey on the west and the black sea on the East.
They became an Independent country after the fall of the Iron curtain in the 1990's.
They are a struggling Democracy spurred on by the West with promises of joining NATO.
Russia doesn't agree with the Idea and has been supporting a separatist State within Georgia for years. Providing them with military aid and establishing a peacekeeping force in the areas.
Recently they have been expediting the citizens of that separatist state toward Russia citizenship and attempting to annex the area.
Did I mention they weren't happy with Bush pressing to add them to NATO?
I have been saying for month's Bush is about to single-handily reconstitute the Cold war! This is a good beginning.
There is really little, outside diplomatic levels that we can do about it.
We can not win a conventional war against Russia. The only way we could fight them is to begin a nuclear conflict, and no one could hope to win that.
I'm afraid this is just another example of the Bush Administration's failed foreign policies!!

He cant even talk tough and face them down as we did in during the Cold war. He has weakened our military too much and stretched them so thin we would have to reinstate the draft to bring our forces back up to the Cold War levels.
All we can hope for is they stop on their own and dont take back more of their former satellite states.

Hummm

Something is amiss. I find myself pretty much agreeing with Fanta on this one.

The fate of South Ossetia could easily be handled diplomatically. If they want to be apart of Russia again, it would seem to me that they could do so peacefully. They're already governing themselves independently from Georgia, and there's only 70,000 of them. A show of hands should be more than enough to make things final. Russia has a right to defend it's peace keepers in the region, however I think Georgia's "offensive" has been highly over inflated -- and received a greater over-reaction from Russia. Both nations should be disciplined until they've worked things out in a more respectable manner.

Actually, we can win in a nuclear war, the United States achieved nuclear primacy over China and Russia in late-2005. Both their stockpiles and delivery vehicles would be destroyed during an American first strike.

I really dont think any of us wants to find out...

Well, of course not. I'm just saying.

War,
I think you've finally went over the edge!!!

In a Nuclear winter there are no winners. Just starvation and mutant ninja turtles!!!

i had been saying for a while. Russia is far from dead. there attack of Georgia proves that.and of course. are not going to do nothing about it . reason why. for me our government are bully's. they will attack little country like Iraq, but don't have the balls to attack. another super power, cold war is not over far from it.

Bush's reaction to this is similar to when 9-11 occurred.
Instead of a school though, he is sitting watching the Olympics 2 ft away from Russian leader Putin yucking it up!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/26095477#26092138

yes after coming home from work. i called my aunt in Moscow. she says Putin just doing it to prove a point to the west. for me message received.

Apparently, you don't understand the concept of nuclear primacy. There is no nuclear winter in the scenario I just outlined. Educate yourself: http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20060301faessay85204/keir-a-lieber-daryl-g-press/the-rise-of-u-s-nuclear-primacy.html

That aint going to happen.
That's a fantasy scenario!!

In order to knock out all Russia and China's nukes in the first place, would take enough from us to create a Nuclear winter, and then we dont have that many.
Nor can we be sure we'd get every one of them, if we did have that many.

Check all three countries nuclear arsenals. You'll see we dont have enough.

Then, figure the ones that aren't counted under any treaty. Battlefield Nukes that can be fired from conventional artillery.

Oh and while you're at it, you better figure in all the other countries that have Nukes too!
I'm very aware of the reality of nuclear weapons and the capabilities that exist.

The idea that we can take out all of Russia's Nukes in a first strike, is fantasy in itself!!

Hello.........
Can you name all the mutant ninja turtles???

Diplomats issued a flurry of statements calling on both sides to halt the fighting and called for another emergency session of the United Nations Security Council, its second since early Friday morning seeking to prevent an all-out war.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Russia to halt aircraft and missile attacks and withdraw combat forces from Georgian territory. Rice said in a statement the United States wants Russia to respect Georgian sovereignty and agree to international mediation.
OH GOD I AM LAUGHING SO HARD I ALMOST FELL OUT OF MY CHAIR.......... RESPECT THEIR SOVEREIGNTY SHE SAID............. http://news.aol.com/article/russian-...760x1200365414
__________________
"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired is, in a sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed."

Dwight D. Eisenhower, April 16, 1953

I think the figure is 20 thermo nuclear bombs going off is enough to set of a nuclear winter. Not realy sure if it is 20 a few more or less but thats pretty close read it somewere. then its mass starvation, genocide oh but we would win............