French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on October 8 that the Geneva talks due to start on October 15 should be all-inclusive.

“To succeed, these talks must include all the parties involved, while also respecting the positions of each side,” AFP quoted Sarkozy as saying at an international conference in Evian, France, ahead of talks with his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev.

Russia insists on allowing representatives from Abkhazia and South Ossetia to take part in the Geneva talks, which is opposed by Tbilisi.

AFP also quoted an unnamed European diplomat as saying that the EU's special envoy for the Georgia crisis, Pierre Morel, was working on ways to include representatives from the two breakaway regions in the talks, without alienating Georgia.

"We are well aware that it is more than a mere detail," the official said, adding that there were ways "for them to be there, without actually being seated at the table."