TBILISI, GEORGIA: Georgian Catholicos Patriarch Illia II spoke about the political crisis in Georgia in his Sunday sermon on August 10. The patriarch expressed his concern that Orthodox Russians were bombing Orthodox Georgians and that such aggression had never occurred in the history of the two nations.

Patriarch Illia said, "Indeed, we are facing very serious peril, but don’t be afraid of anything, God is with us and the Virgin Mary is protecting is, but one thing that concerns us very deeply is that Orthodox Russians are bombing Orthodox Georgians."

"This is an unprecedented act of relations between our countries. Reinforce your prayer and God will save Georgia. There is a saying 'Water will flow up and down and will return to its weir.' So, believe that God will not separate Georgia into peices," the patriarch declared.

United States President George Bush, speaking from the Olympic games in Beijing, sharply criticized Moscow's harsh military crackdown in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, saying the violence is unacceptable and Russia's response is disproportionate.

The office of US Vice President Dick Cheney quoted him as saying, "Russian aggression must not go unanswered, and that its continuation would have serious consequences for its relations with the United States."

"The vice president expressed the United States' solidarity with the Georgian people and their democratically elected government in the face of this threat to Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity," stated Cheney press secretary, Lee Ann McBride.

Also, Ukraine warned Russia it could bar Russian navy ships from returning to their base in the Crimea region because of their deployment to Georgia's coast.

Sources:
Press Service - UAOC-Ukraine
Patriarchate of Georgia
Associated Press