From the Times (London): Georgia today denounced the proposed French sale of tanks and warships to Russia as extremely dangerous, saying that it would allow Moscow to invade any former Soviet republic or East European country “within hours”.

On a visit to London President Saakashvili said that the sale of a Mistral-class advanced amphibious ship was “very risky” and could lead to a direct confrontation between Nato and Russian Mistral vessels in the Black Sea. He will be seeking urgent talks with President Sarkozy, who has approved but not yet formally announced the sale…

The Georgian leader said that he was even more worried by proposals by the French company Panhard to sell armoured personnel carriers to Moscow. He said that these light-weight tanks were far superior to anything Russia currently had and were a threat not only to Georgia but all its neighbours…

Georgia’s warning that this directly threatened its security has been echoed by the Baltic states. Urmas Paet, the Estonian Foreign Minister, last week urged Paris to consider how the deal would complicate Nato’s security. He said that Moscow now labelled Nato as an enemy, not a friend, and Mistral sales would lead to a “broken security balance." (photo: Pierre Delattre)

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