Germany's Steinmeier warns against isolating Russia

KOENIGSWUSTERHAUSEN, Germany, Aug 31 (Reuters) - German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Sunday The European Union should not isolate Russia over its actions in Georgia.

EU leaders will meet in Brussels on Monday to discuss the bloc's response to Russia's military intervention and its decision to recognise Georgia's separatist regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states.

"The government in Moscow deserves criticism for its behavior but that doesn't change the fact that security and stability in Europe can only be achieved with and not against Russia," Steinmeier said in a speech in a town south of Berlin.

"Thus Europe would only be hurting itself if we were to get full of emotion and slam all the doors shut to the rooms that we will want to enter afteRwards," added Steinmeier.

"My appeal is: Let us put an end to this daily whipping up of emotions." The situation is already bad enough, he said.

(Writing by Erik Kirschbaum; editing by Ralph Boulton)