New York  - Raising the spectre of lawlessness and a humanitarian crisis in Georgia, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on both Russia and Georgia on Thursday to rein in their armed forces following reports of looting, continued fighting and lack of access to those in need.

Ban said he had become "extremely concerned by the humanitarian impact of the recent conflict on the civilian population in Georgia, which has suffered loss of life and injury, significant damage to property and infrastructure."

Berlin  - German Chancellor Angela Merkel will visit Tbilisi on Sunday for talks with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, Berlin confirmed Thursday evening.

A government spokesman said the visit would last just a day.

Merkel's visit would follow shortly on her trip starting on Friday to Russia, when she is to meet with President Dimitry Medvedev. That meeting, with the talks expected to focus on the Caucasus conflict, is to take place in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi.

Washington  - There is no prospect the United States will use military force to resolve the ongoing conflict between Georgia and Russia, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday.

"The United States spent 45 years working very hard to avoid a military confrontation with Russia," Gates said, referring to the Cold War. "I see no reason to change that approach today."

Kathmandu, Aug 14: India’s

London, Aug. 14: All US combat troops will leave Iraq within three years, provided the violence remains low, under the terms of a draft agreement with the Iraqi Government.

Iraq’s Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari also told The Times that the US military would be barred from unilaterally mounting attacks inside Iraq from next year.

In addition, he said that the power of arrest for US soldiers would be curbed by the need to hand over any detainee to a new, US-Iraqi committee.

Islamabad, Aug 14: Pakistan Government has opposed India’s unilateral decision of allowing trekking teams to Siachen glacier. The country’s Information Minister Sherry Rehman said that the move would “undermine” the dialogue process with India.

She said the Indian decision was a “matter of concern” for Pakistan, and that her country’s government had immediately lodged a strong protest with New Delhi regarding this.

Pakistan wanted progress towards solution of all disputes with India without compromising its principled position, the Daily Times quoted Sherry as saying.