By Patrick Worsnip

NEW YORK, Sept 25 (Reuters) - The chairman of the OSCE European security grouping said after meeting Russia's foreign minister on Thursday he hoped to resolve a deadlock over sending monitors into Georgia's rebel South Ossetia region.

Moscow-backed South Ossetia was at the center of last month's war in the Caucasus when Georgia tried to seize back the region, which broke away in the 1990s, and Russia retaliated by sending troops deep into Georgia.

The 56-nation Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe wants to boost its military monitors in and near South Ossetia, but talks in Vienna stalled last week over Russian objections.

OSCE Chairman Alexander Stubb, Finland's foreign minister, said in an interview that after a "good discussion" with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov he was "carefully hopeful" of resolving the problem.

"He promised to get in contact with Moscow and have a discussion on that side," Stubb said. "We'll see. The next 24 hours will be crucial on that count."

Stubb and Lavrov are attending the annual U.N. General Assembly gathering of world leaders in New York.

The OSCE agreed in principle last month to send 100 unarmed military monitors to Georgia and 20 were quickly deployed, but talks on completing the deployment have dragged on. Russia has said the monitors must seek permission from South Ossetia's authorities if they are to operate there in the long term.

Stubb said the 100 monitors, if deployed, would be stationed just outside South Ossetia, but the OSCE also wants eight more to operate inside South Ossetia. Stubb said he was hopeful of movement on both issues "pretty soon."

If they got into South Ossetia, the eight monitors would make daily trips to various parts of the region and write reports on any military movements or violence.

"First of all, we would get very objective information about what the situation is on the ground, and secondly they would have a calming effect, I think, on the region," Stubb said.

A separate 300-member European Union mission is now deploying in Georgia to monitor the pullout of Russian troops.

Stubb said international discussions due to open in Geneva on Oct. 15 on security and stability in Georgia, refugees and other issues should start with modest expectations.

"We should not be hopeful that we'll find some kind of a permanent solution to the conflict," he said. (Editing by Doina Chiacu)

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