Speaking to reporters in Sochi on 18 August, President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is not taking sides in the conflict between Tbilisi and the Georgian region of South Ossetia, ORT and RTR reported. Moscow is ready to play the role of mediator and to serve as guarantor of any agreements that might be reached, Putin said. \"From time to time we hear the assertion that the conflict is taking the form of a Russian-Georgian confrontation,\" Putin said. \"But it is not like this and it cannot be like this.\" He said he believes the conflict began in the early 1990s when Tbilisi \"abolished the autonomous status of South Ossetia and Abkhazia\" (in fact, only South Ossetia\'s autonomous status was abolished). \"This foolish decision triggered ethnic conflicts, and today we see a repetition of what happened in the 1990s,\" Putin said. He added that Russia is concerned by the \"explosive development\" of the situation in South Ossetia and about the atmosphere in Abkhazia. Russia is calling on all sides in the conflicts to show a willingness to compromise and to resolve them through peaceful means. (RFE/RL)