By KUNA,
Paris : France, which currently holds the presidency of the European Union, has summoned Foreign Ministers of the 27-member body for an extraordinary meeting Wednesday in Brussels to discuss the worsening crisis in the Caucasus, a statement from Paris said.
The meeting will be chaired by French Foreign and European Affairs Minister Bernard Kouchner, who has just returned from the region after presenting both sides with a proposal for a cease-fire.
Kouchner visited both Tbilisi and Moscow for talks alongside Alexander Stubb, who represents the Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and which is active in seeking a halt to hostilities.
President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, who heads the EU Council, is also in Moscow Tuesday for talks with Russian leaders and heads to Georgia for further consultations on Tuesday night.
In Brussels on Wednesday, the Ministers of the Union will analyze the situation, including from the humanitarian angle, and will examine action to take to promote a rapid solution to the conflict.
Diplomats here say Russia could come under strong criticism from some sides because of what is being labelled disproportionate reactions to Georgian military initiatives in South Ossetia, which both countries had agreed to jointly patrol pending a negotiation to resolve sovereignty claims.
There could also be calls to take measures against Russia because Russian forces penetrated into Georgia beyond the South Ossetia demarcations and this operation is still going on.
The measures would be largely symbolic and could revolve around cooperation agreements that are currently being implemented between the EU and Russia to facilitate travel and trade between the two sides.