Vienna - The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has started to increase the number of its observers to monitor the ceasefire in Georgia, a spokeswoman said Monday.

In addition to the eight military monitors that had been stationed in Georgia's capital Tbilisi, six officers from Finland, France and the United States have been deployed to the country in the past days, Sonya Yee said.

A total of 20 monitors will arrive within the coming days. The unarmed officers are being recruited from a pool of 23 countries, Yee said.

While the eight original observers will be able to enter the breakaway province of South Ossetia as soon as the security situation permits, their newly arrived colleagues will have to stay out of the conflict zone.

In a next step, the number of OSCE officers will be increased to a total of 100, but member states still have to decide where exactly they will be stationed.

So far, Russia has not agreed to have more monitors inside South Ossetia. (dpa)