Fighting erupts between Georgia, separatist region

Fighting broke out early Wednesday between Georgia and its separatist, pro-Russian republic of South Ossetia, Interfax news agency reported.

Shots rang out at 12:45 am local time (2045 GMT) from Georgian positions, not far from the Ossetian capital Tskhinvali. The outskirts of Tskhinvali and two Ossetian villages nearby came under fire, but there were no reports of casualties.

After a brief suspension, battle resumed at 02:35 am local time(2235 GMT), with mortar shots being fired on Tskhinvali from the Georgian village of Tamaresheni, said the reports, adding that some buildings in Tskhinvali had suffered damage.

The clash occurred as Georgian Defense Minister Georgy Baramidze was on a visit to Moscow to defuse rising tension between Tbilisi and Moscow over the breakaway region and resolve agrowing military conflict in the corridor between South Ossetia and Georgia.

Baramidze, who met with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Ivanov,said Tuesday that his country was ready to fight if needed to win back South Ossetia but would prefer to resolve the dispute throughnegotiation.

Source: Xinhua