Putin called for those guilty of killing civilians to be brought to trial [AFP]

Al Jazeera's Neave Barker describes the scene in Moscow after word reaches Russians of Georgia's order for a ceasefire in South Ossetia.

Russian forces have taken control of Tskhinvali, the capital of Georgia's breakaway South Ossetia region.

News of a Georgian retreat from South Ossetia has been greeted in the capital with a degree of celebration.

Up to 300 hundred people gathered outside the Georgian embassy for an emotional protest.

"Send Saakashvili and Bush to the Hague" they chanted, many waving Abkhazian and South Ossetian flags.  In amongst the crowd, members of pro-government youth movements lending their vocal support.

Many Muscovites view South Ossetians as brethren kin. The vast majority in the breakaway region have Russian passports, regarded by the Russian government as citizens that need defending.

The US embassy has also been the target of demonstrations. Ordinary Russian's feel that Tblisi would never have committed itself to a large scale conflict had it not been allegedly propped up by Washington.

There has been no anger directed at the Georgian people a vast number of whom live in the capital. Vladimir Putin, the Russian prime minister, shared this sentiment, calling the Georgian people "brothers".

The capital's Georgian population is keeping a low profile.

Russian media

The vast majority of Russian news coverage of events comes from state run television stations that focus heavily on the humanitarian situation. Many of them have amazing access and pictures from the heart of the conflict zone, somewhere western journalists are not permitted to go.

It's clear an information war is being waged as well as one on the ground.  All channels follow the government line that Georgia has committed genocide. 

Returning from refugee centres in southern Russia, Putin called for a tribunal to be set up to try those guilty of killing civilians on the ground.

"All crimes have to be fixed and be analysed later" agreed Dmitry Medvedev, Russia's president.

Russia is seeking legitimacy for its actions on a global stage.  It continues to insist its aims are to "keep the peace" not to "wage war".

Throughout Sunday, top Russian officials met to discuss the next strategic steps in the conflict.

Press conferences by Russia's deputy foreign minister and chief of general staff were relayed live on a number of state controlled news channels. The message the Kremlin wanted to affirm was that Russia was very much in control of the situation and that it was the Georgian side that was unwilling to back down.

By early evening Moscow confirmed that it had received an official note of ceasefire from Georgia.

The news was greeted tentatively by the Kremlin who continued to report skirmishes on the ground and the presence of Georgian troops in and around Abkhazia.

Late evening Russia's ministry of defence confirmed it had sunk a Georgian missile boat in the Black sea after it and three others boats failed to respond to radio calls and warning shots.

Moscow insists that if any kind of ceasefire is going to hold Georgia must mount and unconditional withdrawal of troops, cease hostilities and agree to a number of obligations - namely not to launch attacks on its breakaway regions again. 

While many in the capital believe Moscow is in the latter stages of a "strategic win" the reality is that the Russian government cannot imagine long-term peace without regime change in Tbilisi, an indicator perhaps that a resolution to the conflict is still far away.

Sustained fighting and air raids by Russian war planeson Sunday  prompted Georgia to call for a cease fire.