President Saakashvili said on July 10 that the Georgian authorities “will regain control over Tskhinvali [the capital of breakaway South Ossetia] very soon.”

“Nothing can obstruct this process,” he said, while addressing the graduation ceremony of the Georgian officers at the Military Academy in Tbilisi.

Mikheil Saakashvili said that the Georgian government is doing its outmost to avoid Georgia’s engagement in “a large-scale armed conflict.” “However, we should be ready for everything,” he added.

President Saakashvili called on Russia to play a positive role in the conflict resolution. Saakashvili said that he could manage to establish “friendly relations” with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, however added that certain “extremist forces in Russia” do not want peace in Georgia.

“Russian elements are among the armed groups [loyal to the breakaway South Ossetian leadership]. In Vladikavkaz [capital of Russia’s North Ossetian Republic] certain forces try to recruit armed groups to join militias in South Ossetia. Ossetians are not our enemies, foreign aggressors are our enemies,” President Saakashvili said.

“Peace has no alternative. The Ossetians know that we want peace. However, we will be extremely severe against those, who arrive in Georgia with weapons and arms. We must stand together and defend our country against enemies,” he added.