Its been a year now since the war in South Ossetia. "Lest We Forget".
I dare you to watch for 30 minutes this well done heartbreaking news story.
We just do not understand what the effects of all wars will continue to bring as suffering to this world. Its senseless acts of violence.Its been a year now since the war in South Ossetia. "Lest We Forget".
I dare you to... more
South Ossetia, Georgia - First elections since the last years summer’s war in Georgia are taking place today in the brakeaway region of South Ossetia whereas the Georgian government considers the action illegal.South Ossetia, Georgia - First elections since the last years summer’s war in... more
Engdahl: NATO exercises in Georgia are a provocative move against Russia by the Pentagon.
The Real News Network spoke to William F. Engdahl, economist and author of Full Spectrum Dominance. Engdahl says that the NATO exercises in Georgia are provocative to Russia because of the uncovered fact that Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili was behind the offensive in South Ossetia last August, while he was in the process of applying for NATO membership. Engdahl also says that the NATO countries are interested in securing alternatives to the Russian stronghold over European oil and explains that the missile defense program NATO wishes to install in Eastern Europe and Georgia has less to do with Iran than Russia.
F William Engdahl is an economist and author and the writer of the best selling book "A Century of War: Anglo-American Oil Politics and the New World Order." Mr Engdhahl has written on issues of energy, politics and economics for more than 30 years, beginning with the first oil shock in the early 1970s. Mr. Engdahl contributes regularly to a number of publications including Asia Times Online, Asia, Inc, Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Foresight magazine; Freitag and ZeitFragen newspapers in Germany and Switzerland respectively. He is based in Germany.Engdahl: NATO exercises in Georgia are a provocative move against Russia by the... more
Malkhaz Gulashvili: The US strategy was to initiate the process of Russia's disintegration.
Earlier this winter, Real News Senior Editor Paul Jay was in the Republic of Georgia to find out more about the roots of that country's August 2008 war with Russia. Here is the second part of his interview with renowned Georgian newspaper publisher, Malkhaz Gulashvili. One outcome of the war was Russia's recognition of the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, something Russia was previously unwilling to do. Gulashvili believes that this was an objective of the United States, as it will inspire existing independence movements in other Russian territories, leading to the inevitable disintegration of Southern Russia. In support of this view, violence between independence fighters and Russian forces in the Northern Caucasus has grown significantly since the recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The important thing for Gulashvili, is that Georgia never again be the location where the US and Russia work out their energy conflicts through war.
Malkhaz Gulashvili is the Owner and Publisher of the Georgian Times, a newspaper from Tbilisi, Georgia that is published in Georgian, Russian and English.
As thousands demanded Saakashvili's resignation, Paul Jay investigated the roots of the 2008 Russia-Georgia War.
For five straight days, thousands of Georgians filled the capital of Tbilisi demanding the resignation of President Mikheil Saakashvili. Saakashvili is under fire for his handling of the August 2008 war with Russia. Real News Senior Editor Paul Jay was in Georgia earlier this winter looking to better understand the causes of conflict in this resource-rich region.
Malkhaz Gulashvili is the Owner and Publisher of the Georgian Times, a newspaper from Tbilisi, Georgia that is published in Georgian, Russian and English.
Last August it was played out on the battlefields of South Ossetia – and now it will be played out on screen. Russia is releasing a film adaptation of last summer's dramatic events in the Caucasus.
The events of last August in South Ossetia dominated world news, and now they've made it to the big screen for the first time.
The ‘Olympius Inferno’ movie tells a story of a young scientist searching for a unique butterfly he hopes to film. Instead, he ends up shooting pictures of a very different kind – the first scenes of Georgia’s military action against South Ossetia.Last August it was played out on the battlefields of South Ossetia – and now it will... more
Georgia’s President Mikheil Saakashvili said the victory of either Barack Obama or John McCain would satisfy him, Interfax reported.
According to Saakashvili, he spotted the most correct theses about Georgia in the program of Barack Obama, while John McCain and Obama’s mate Joe Biden (whom Saakashvili called the vice president) were the long friends of Georgia.
We’ve got $1 billion and a few more billions from Europe thanks to the personal impact of Sen Biden, Saakashvili said.
The friendship of John McCain and Mikheil Saakashvili is no news. Two policymakers even water-skied in 2006.
Democrat Barack Obama has defeated Republican John McCain to make history as the first black to be elected U.S. president.
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I think the poor man is somewhat deluded - Biden had absolutely nothing to do with the EU's contribution to Georgia. I also think he is simply trying to save face, he must be sorely disappointed that his best American buddies, neocons John McCain and Georgia-paid lobbyist Randy Scheunemann, were so soundly defeated. He has recently sacked the top general of the Georgian army and reshuffled his cabinet, putting the blame on all but himself for Georgia's defeat in its reckless and stupid attack and war of aggression on South Ossetia. He is currently facing a great deal of criticism, and the opposition is quite vociferous in its criticism of and attacks on Saakashvili.Georgia’s President Mikheil Saakashvili said the victory of either Barack Obama or... more
As the recent war between Russia and Georgia shows, the aftershocks of the collapse of the Soviet Union are still being felt today. 15 years ago, trouble started when two parts of Georgia, itself newly independent, tried to break away. War followed and entire communities were uprooted. Today over 200,000 refugees live in political limbo, unable to forget the place they once called home.As the recent war between Russia and Georgia shows, the aftershocks of the collapse of... more
MOSCOW: Police in South Ossetia have been ordered to shoot back if they come under fire — a directive that increases the threat of new violence between Georgia and the Russian-backed separatist region.
South Ossetia's top police official issued the order after a police post came under automatic weapons fire Saturday from the ethnic Georgian village of Nikozi, the separatist government said.
Acting Interior Minister Mikhail Mindzayev said no one was hurt by the gunfire, which he called a provocation by Georgian forces.
"We will not allow our people and our officers to be killed," Mindzayev said in a statement.
Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili denied that Georgian forces fired at a South Ossetian post and said Nikozi came under fire early Saturday from South Ossetian-controlled territory.
A visiting U.S. diplomat toured Nikozi and other villages Sunday in Georgian territory outside South Ossetia, where residents have been returning after Russian troops withdrew earlier this month. Many homes in the area have been looted or burned, damage that Georgians blame on South Ossetians.
The visit by Daniel Fried, the assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian Affairs, was the latest show of U.S. support for Georgia. MOSCOW: Police in South Ossetia have been ordered to shoot back if they come under... more
"In a speech before the United Nations last month, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili implored world leaders to set up an international investigation to find out the truth about the war in South Ossetia. I couldn't agree more. But I think the results of an honest investigation would reveal a very different "truth" than what President Saakashvili claims.""In a speech before the United Nations last month, Georgian President Mikheil... more
William Engdahl: Russia's response to Georgia's offensive sends shock-waves throughout the region. Part 1 of 2
Russia flexed its military might over the weekend, testing a Topol intercontinental ballistic missile. The tests come amid increasingly strained ties between Washington and Moscow, following US ally Georgia’s military offensive in South Ossettia in August. Author and Political Economist William Engdahl says " Russia's response to Georgia's military offensive has sent shockwaves throughout the region."
F William Engdahl is an economist and author and the writer of the best selling book "A Century of War: Anglo-American Oil Politics and the New World Order." Mr Engdhahl has written on issues of energy, politics and economics for more than 30 years, beginning with the first oil shock in the early 1970s. Mr. Engdahl contributes regularly to a number of publications including Asia Times Online, Asia, Inc, Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Foresight magazine; Freitag and ZeitFragen newspapers in Germany and Switzerland respectively. He is based in Germany.
Pepe Escobar: McCain insists on demonizing Russia - he's not even listening to his own heroes.
At the second US presidential debate, Senator John McCain once again raised the specter of a renewed Cold War, displaying a very confrontational position towards Russia. Even Senator Barack Obama accused Russia of promoting "mischief around the world". McCain don't seem to be listening to his own heroes - certified Cold Warrior Henry Kissinger, who advises him, and counterinsurgency ace Gen. David Petraeus.
Pepe Escobar, born in Brazil is the roving correspondent for Asia Times and an analyst for The Real News Network. He's been a foreign correspondent since 1985, based in London, Milan, Los Angeles, Paris, Singapore, and Bangkok. Since the late 1990s, he has specialized in covering the arc from the Middle East to Central Asia, including the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He has made frequent visits to Iran and is the author of Globalistan and also Red Zone Blues: A Snapshot of Baghdad During the Surge both published by Nimble Books in 2007.
Pepe Escobar: McCain insists on demonizing Russia - he's not even listening to his own... more
A powerful car bomb exploded yesterday near a military base used by Russian peacekeeping troops in Tskhinvali, the capital of the breakaway region of South Ossetia, killing at least seven and injuring three, writes Charles Clover in Moscow.
It was the worst act of violence since the end of the war in mid-August, and threatened a fragile peace accord in which Russia has pledged to withdraw its troops from positions in central Georgia and back to South Ossetia and Abkhazia by October 10. Russian officials said they were still investigating the blast. Some feared it could be used to justify any delay in the withdrawal.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008By Charles Clover
A powerful car bomb exploded yesterday near a military base used... more
Gareth Porter discusses US hawkishness in the Caucasus with Real News Network senior editor Paul Jay. As the US and NATO pursue their containment policy, the threat of a new cold war emerges.
Gareth Porter is a historian and investigative journalist on US foreign and military policy analyst. He writes regularly for Inter Press Service on US policy towards Iraq and Iran. Author of four books, the latest of which is Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam.
Georgia says its military has shot down a Russian reconnaissance drone that was flying over Georgian territory - a claim denied by Russia.
The unmanned plane was downed south of the de facto border with breakaway South Ossetia, the Georgian government said, though no evidence was provided.
Russia dismissed the claim as "another media provocation by Georgia".
Russia recognised the independence of South Ossetia after a short war broke out over the territory last month.
Russia has been withdrawing from Georgia proper under a ceasefire deal.
European Union monitors have been deploying in Georgia, to verify the Russian withdrawal and oversee the ceasefire. They are due to start patrolling on 1 October.
Georgia accused separatists from Abkhazia, a second breakaway region also recognised by Moscow, of breaching the ceasefire and shooting dead a Georgian police officer on Sunday.
Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili said the drone was shot down on Monday near the town of Gori, some 30 km (20 miles) from South Ossetia.
"It was flying over the territory between the villages of Khurvaleti and Tsitelubani," Mr Utiashvili said.
"We believe it was patrolling the territory where the Baku-Supsa [oil] pipeline runs."
Reconnaissance flights played a role in escalating tensions between Georgia and Russia in the build-up to the war that broke out on 7 August.
In May Georgia released video pictures of what it said was a Russian jet shooting down a Georgian drone over Abkhazia.
Georgia said the jet had breached its territorial integrity - which was at that stage still recognised by Russia.
Russia denied its jet was involved, though UN monitors backed the Georgian claim.
Earlier in the month Abkhaz fighters said they had shot down two Georgian drones over Abkhazia - a claim denied by Georgia.
In July Russia admitted its jets had flown over South Ossetia.
The conflict in the region began when Georgia tried to retake South Ossetia by force after a series of lower-level clashes.
Russia launched a counter-attack and the Georgian troops were ejected from both South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Georgia says its military has shot down a Russian reconnaissance drone that was flying... more
President Dmitri Medvedev has accused the West of trying to push Russia behind a new "Iron Curtain".
"This is not our path. For us there is no sense going back to the past," the Russian leader said in Moscow.
He also blamed Nato for provoking last month's fighting between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia.
His comments come a day after US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Russia was becoming increasingly aggressive abroad.
In a strongly-worded speech, Ms Rice said Moscow was on a "one-way path to isolation and irrelevance".
Diplomatic relations between the US and its European allies, on one side, and Russia on the other, have been strained by the Georgian conflict.
Lambasting Nato
"We are in effect being pushed down a path that is founded not on fully-fledged, civilised partnership with other countries, but on autonomous development, behind thick walls, behind an Iron Curtain," President Medvedev said.
He said that Moscow would not allow this to happen, adding that he did not want disputes with the West.
Mr Medvedev also said that Nato's role in the Georgian conflict proved that the military bloc was unable to provide security in Europe.
"What has Nato done, what has it guaranteed? It only provoked the conflict. That's all," he said.
The fighting began on 7 August when Georgia tried to retake its breakaway region of South Ossetia by force after a series of lower-level clashes.
Russia launched a counter-attack and the Georgian troops were ejected from both South Ossetia and Abkhazia - another Georgia's rebel region - several days later.
The Kremlin later recognised Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states. So far, Nicaragua is the only other country to have done so. President Dmitri Medvedev has accused the West of trying to push Russia behind a new... more
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a loan for Georgia, amounting to $750m (£418m).
It is aimed at rebuilding the country's currency reserves and boosting confidence in its economy following last month's conflict with Russia.
Analysts say the money could offset any difficulty Georgia might have in selling products abroad or in attracting foreign investment.
The approval came as Nato chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer was visiting Tbilisi.
He called for Georgia's "accelerated" integration with Nato and condemned Russia's conduct in the conflict.
But Mr de Hoop Scheffer - speaking at the first meeting of the Nato-Georgia Commission - did not say when Georgia might join the alliance.
EU aid
A third of the IMF loan will be released immediately, with the rest to come in stages over the next 18 months.
David Owen, a senior IMF adviser, told reporters that the funding was above normal limits for the fund, because of the "exceptional pressures" facing Georgia.
He added that Georgia's growth prospects had been hit by the Russian incursion, but that the economy was well placed to recover quickly.
Also on Monday, the EU announced 500m euros (£397m, $712m) to help Georgia's recovery.
European Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said the aid would go to assisting internally displaced people, post-conflict rehabilitation, and towards new infrastructure.
In Brussels, EU foreign ministers were set to clear the way for at least 200 ceasefire monitors to deploy to buffer zones around South Ossetia and Abkhazia, ahead of an expected Russian troop withdrawal by 10 October.
It is unclear whether the monitors will actually be allowed to enter the breakaway regions, which are full of Russian troops.
In August Russia launched a counter-attack and the Georgian troops were ejected from both South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a loan for Georgia, amounting to... more
Five weeks after the war in the Caucasus the mood is shifting against Georgian President Saakashvili. Some Western intelligence reports have undermined Tbilisi's version of events and there are now calls on both sides of the Atlantic for an independent investigation.
(long story continued at link)Five weeks after the war in the Caucasus the mood is shifting against Georgian... more
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili had long planned a military strike to seize back the breakaway region of South Ossetia but executed it poorly, making it easy for Russia to retaliate, Saakashvili's former defence minister said.
Irakly Okruashvili, Georgia's leading political exile, said in a weekend interview in Paris that the United States was partly to blame for the war, having failed to check the ambitions of what he called a man with democratic failings.
Saakashvili's days as president were now numbered, he said.
The former defence minister's remarks are significant because Saakashvili has always maintained Russia started the war by invading his country. The Georgian president said he handed EU leaders last week "very strong proof" that Moscow was to blame, though he did not give details.
But Okruashvili, a close Saakashvili ally who served as defence minister from 2004 to 2006, said he and the president worked together on military plans to invade South Ossetia and a second breakaway region on the Black Sea coast, Abkhazia.
"Abkhazia was our strategic priority, but we drew up military plans in 2005 for taking both Abkhazia and South Ossetia as well," Okruashvili said.
There was no immediate reaction from Saakashvili's officials to his remarks.
While in office, Okruashvili was an outspoken hawk, overseeing a military buildup and calling for Georgia to take back South Ossetia -- his birthplace -- by force.
But in the interview he fiercely criticized Saakashvili's handling of the war, which he said was launched in haste, without diplomatic support and failed to take account of a build-up of Russian forces in the region.
(more below)Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili had long planned a military strike to seize... more
In August 2008 during the Russia-Georgia-Ossetia war. George Bush, Condoleezza Rica and other dignitaries solemnly invoked the sanctity of the United Nations, warning that Russia could be excluded from international institutions “by taking actions in Georgia that are inconsistent with” their principles. The sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations must be rigorously honored, they intoned – “all nations,” that is, apart from those that the US chooses to attack: Iraq, Serbia, perhaps Iran, and a list of others too long and familiar to mention.
Continues....In August 2008 during the Russia-Georgia-Ossetia war. George Bush, Condoleezza Rica... more
