Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai briefly left the sanctuary of the Dutch Embassy on Wednesday, expressing willingness to hold talks with President Robert Mugabe in efforts quell recent political turmoil.

Tsvangirai said the goal of the talks would be to establish a coalition transitional authority for Zimbabwe.

What is important is that both parties must realize the country is burning and the only way is to sit down and find a way out of it, Tsvangirai said at his Harare home after leaving the embassy.

Tsvangirai had earlier called for international peacekeepers to protect the country's unstable democracy from the oppression of the Mugabe regime who has ruled the country for 28 years.

He also called on world leaders to isolate Mugabe criticized the quiet diplomacy of South African President Thabo Mbeki.

We ask for the UN to go further than its recent resolution, condemning the violence in Zimbabwe, to encompass an active isolation of the dictator Mugabe, Mr Tsvangirai wrote.

For this we need a force to protect the people. We do not want armed conflict, but the people of Zimbabwe need the words of indignation from global leaders to be backed by the moral rectitude of military force.

According to the Dutch Foreign Ministry website, the Netherlands spends 1.6 million euros a year to support human rights organizations in Zimbabwe.

The opposition leader had sought refuge in the embassy after announcing his withdrawal from Friday's run-off presidential election, believing his life and those of his supporters, were under threat. Tsvangirai said that he felt safe in the embassy and may leave soon if practical measures are taken to secure his safety outside the embassy.

South Africa Zimbabwe