Saakashvili says war about Georgia' future

TBILISI, Georgia, Aug. 11 (UPI) -- The war in Georgia isn't about breakaway republic South Ossetia, but the independence and the future of Georgia, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili wrote.

"No country of the former Soviet Union has made more progress toward consolidating democracy, eradicating corruption and building an independent foreign policy than Georgia," Saakashvili wrote in an op-ed article appearing in Monday's The Wall Street Journal. "This conflict is therefore about our common trans-Atlantic values of liberty and democracy."

A Russian military official said operations in Georgia were nearly complete, even as air strikes continued deep in Georgia, The Washington Post reported.

During a news briefing in Moscow, Deputy Chief of General Staff Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn said Russia didn't intend "to invade Georgia," and a key element of the operation was keeping troops inside breakaway republic South Ossetia, The Washington Post reported.

The European Commission Monday called on Russian military action in Georgia "to stop immediately." The United States also condemned Moscow's actions.

Russian planes also were heard flying over the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, CNN reported.

Russia's actions, coming after Georgia offered a cease-fire and pulled its troops out of South Ossetia, has caused international alarm. Two Western officials said it was possible Russia could try to destroy Georgia's armed forces or overthrow the pro-Western Saakashvili, The New York Times said.

"If Georgia falls, this will also mean the fall of the West in the entire former Soviet Union and beyond," he said.