West urges immediate ceasefire in S. Ossetia

BRUSSELS (AFP) - The European Union, United States and Nato led international calls Friday for an immediate end to violence in South Ossetia amid fears of all-out war between Russia and Georgia.

The United States called on “all sides” to halt the violence and engage in direct talks “to resolve this matter peacefully, said White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe, travelling with President George W Bush in Beijing.

Nato Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer voiced similar sentiments, calling on all sides to bring “an immediate end to the armed clashes and direct talks between the parties.”

The message was not so united at the UN Security Council in New York, where Russia sits as a permanent veto-wielding member.

It expressed concern about the worsening fighting in South Ossetia, but failed to agree on a statement urging the warring sides to renounce the use of force.