Embattled Georgian troops pulled out of the disputed province of South Ossetia and agreed to a ceasefire Sunday, submitting to Russia's far superior firepower, as international envoys headed in to try to end fighting between Russia and its tiny US-allied neighbor. The retreat and the ceasefire came after Russia expanded its bombing blitz Sunday, targeting Georgia's capital for the first time and driving Georgian troops out of South Ossetia's provincial capital of Tskhinvali with heavy shelling. Georgia President Mikhail Saakashvili issued a presidential ceasefire order after the country's troops withdrew from the province, the Georgian Foreign Ministry said. “Georgia expresses its readiness to immediately start negotiations with the Russian Federation on ceasefire and termination of hostilities,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that it had notified Russia's envoy to Tbilisi. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Sunday termed Georgian military operations in South Ossetia “genocide,” as “they were on a mass scale and were directed against individuals,” according to Russian news agencies. Russia has demanded that Georgia pull out its troops from South Ossetia as a condition to negotiate a cease-fire. It also urged Georgia to sign a pledge not to use force against South Ossetia as another condition for ending hostilities. A Western diplomat said the United States planned to introduce a resolution in the UN Security Council Sunday that would “condemn the Russian action” in Georgia. The meeting was called by Georgia. The movement of Russia's naval fleet from their base in Ukraine to positions near Georgia also threatened to destabilize the region. Ukraine's foreign ministry threatened to prevent the warships from returning to their base in the Ukrainian port of Sevastopol. A Russian press report claimed the battleships were preparing to implement a sea blockade on Georgia, but this was also denied in Moscow. Abkhazia's leader Sergei Bagapsh on Sunday decreed a 10-day “state of war” in areas close to Georgian-controlled territory, Interfax news agency reported. Russia's armed forces denied plans to expand the conflict into Abkhazia.
