(WARSAW) - Poland's President Lech Kaczynski on Sunday proposed an international stabilisation force for the south Caucasus region, a plan he said had the support of four other countries, his office said.

Kaczynski set out the plan in a telephone conversation with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, whose country currently holds the rotating six-month European Union presidency, Mariusz Handzlik of the president's office told AFP.

"The plan, presented by Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Ukraine would involve an immediate end to the hostilities and the start of peace talks," said Handzlik of the conflict between Georgia and Russia in South Ossetia.

It would also involve international organisations such as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and humanitarian aid for the civilian population in the region, he added.

Handzlik works in the foreign affairs section of the president's office.

On Saturday, the presidents of the three Baltic states -- Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania -- and Poland called on the EU and NATO to oppose the "imperialist policy" of Russia in a strongly worded joint statement.

EU foreign ministers will discuss the crisis in Brussels on Wednesday.

Earlier Sunday, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski told the PAP news agency that Poland would be ready to play a role in any such force.

Because of the recent fighting, it was no longer possible for Russian soldiers alone to assure peace in the region, he added, echoing comments made late Saturday by Kaczynski.

Sikorski said that both France and Germany backed the idea of an EU stabilisation force.

South Ossetia broke from Georgia in the early 1990s. Moscow sent troops as peacekeepers in support of the enclave, where many of its 70,000 residents have been granted Russian passports.

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