Conflict between Georgia and Russia expands

The war between Russia and Georgia expanded on Saturday, with fighting spilling outside the Caucasus province of Ossetia, both sides moving reinforcements into the region and Georgian President Mikheil Saakhashvili declaring martial law in the country.

Meanwhile the presidents of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia condemned in a joint statement the actions of Russian forces fighting in South Ossetia. South Ossetia and Abkhazia are part of the republic of Georgia and 'nothing can change this,' Polish President Lech Kaczynski told journalists in Warsaw.

While the international community continued to exhort both sides to step back from the brink, the United Nations Security Council remained unable to forge a united response.

Poland has been lobbying for Georgia's entry into NATO and the EU.

[of course not: Russia sits on the security council, with veto authority. And were Georgia admitted into NATO or the EU, one or both might actually have to do something. ]

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