Russian tanks and troops have entered the region of South Ossetia and are approaching regional capital Tskhinvali, Russian news agencies reported.

Russian army units are approaching Tskhinvali to help peacekeepers in the conflict zone with Georgia, which tried to regain control of the region, said Col. Igor Konashenkov, aide to the Russian Land Forces commander.

"Units of the 58th Army have left to help Russian peacekeepers, they are approaching Tskhinvali," Konashenkov said.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that more than 10 of its peacekeepers in South Ossetia have been killed amid a Georgian offensive.

The ministry also said necessary assistance will be rendered to the Russian peacekeepers, the citizens of the Russian Federation in North Ossetia and the self-proclaimed republic.

Meanwhile, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has ordered the government to allocate funding to organize humanitarian aid for people hurt as a result of the escalation of the conflict.

In an earlier report, senior Georgian security officials said Russian jets bombed a military airbase outside the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Friday, wounding nobody but destroying buildings.

Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said in a television interview with CNN on Friday that Russia was fighting a war with his country. "Russia is fighting a war with us in our own territory," the president said.

"We have Russian tanks moving in. We have continuous Russian bombardment since yesterday ... specifically targeting the civilian population," Saakashvili said.

Shortly before, a NATO spokesperson said it calls on both sides to show restraint while claiming that it has no direct role in Georgia conflict.

(Xinhua News Agency August 9, 2008)