Still not talking about the state, but rather the armed conflict in southern Europe.

Georgia says its forces have withdrawn from the separatist enclave of South Ossetia, and that Russian troops are now in control of the regional capital.

An interior ministry spokesman told the BBC it was not a military defeat but a necessary step to protect civilians from a “humanitarian catastrophe”.

Georgia says Russia has brought an additional 10,000 soldiers across its frontiers, readying for a raid.

Georgian troops have pulled back to positions at or south of those held on 6 August, when the current hostilities began, said Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili.

Earlier, Georgia’s President Mikhail Saakashvili called for an immediate ceasefire to stop what he described as an “annihilation” of his country’s democracy.

In the absence of independent verification, there are conflicting figures about the casualties suffered on both sides but the numbers appeared to rise sharply on Saturday.

Based on Russian and South Ossetian estimates, the death toll on the South Ossetian side was at least 1,500. According to Moscow, all but a few of the dead were civilians.