Russia Admits Flying Jets Over Breakaway Georgian Republic

Russia ratcheted up tensions with Georgia today by admitting for the first time in years that its air force had flown over South Ossetia, saying it believed Tbilisi was preparing to attack the rebel republic.

Moscow said the flights were necessary to "cool hot heads" among Georgia's pro-western government.

South Ossetia and Abkhazia broke away from Tbilisi's rule after wars in the 1990s but have yet to gain international recognition outside of Russia.

Earlier, Georgia's president, Mikhail Saakashvili, said Russian jets had been seen over Tbilisi on Monday. He urged Moscow to respect his country.

Explaining the flights, Russia's foreign ministry said: "The need arose to take urgent and active measures to prevent bloodshed and keep the situation within peaceful bounds."

The statement, quoted by Reuters, added: "In order to clarify the situation, aircraft of the Russian air force carried out a brief flight over the territory of South Ossetia. This step allowed us to cool hot heads in Tbilisi and prevent events developing along military lines, the likelihood of which was more than real."

The admission is believed to be the first for more than 10 years of Russian air force flights over Georgia. Until now Moscow has always denied Georgia's claims of violating its airspace.

Speaking at a joint news conference with the US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, Saakashvili joked that the jets might have been welcoming Rice, who arrived on Monday.

But he called on Russia "to observe his country's sovereignty and territorial integrity and contribute to the peaceful settlement of Georgian-Abkhazian and Georgian-South Ossetian conflicts within the framework of internationally recognized borders."

He added: "Georgia is a small, but proud, country. We have our own state interests and wish to ensure our security."

Rice called for calm from both sides.

"It [Russia] needs to be a part of resolving the problem ? and not contributing to it," she said.

"It is very important that all parties reject violence as an option. There must be a peaceful solution."

Russia claims Tbilisi wants to attack the regions to regain control over them, against the wishes of their populations.

Georgia, which is lobbying for Nato membership, says Russia itself wants control of the regions.