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Escalating situation in (country of) Georgia (pg. 10)
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| pkcRAISTLIN |
| quote: | Originally posted by hardcore trancer
Hmmm you do realize |
aNYthing? youre kidding right? ha. |
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| Moongoose |
| quote: | TBLISI, Georgia (CNN) -- Russian troops have warned they intend to push further into western Georgia, Georgian officials claimed Sunday as an increasingly violent territorial dispute in the former Soviet state threatened to spiral into a major international conflict.
Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili said Russian forces plan to move into the city of Zugdidi, which is beyond the border of the breakaway province of Abkhazia.
White House Deputy National Security Advisor Jim Jeffrey said the United States was urgently looking into the report, saying that it would be a very serious escalation for Russia to move into Georgia beyond the Abkhazia region.
Jeffrey, speaking to reporters in Beijing Sunday, said Russia's failure to end its "disproportionate" action against Georgia could have a "significant long term impact on U.S.-Russian relations."
Earlier, Georgia's military pulled its troops from the capital of separatist province South Ossetia as thousands of Russian troops moved into the area, military officials confirmed Sunday.
Georgian troops have withdrawn from Tskhinvali back to the positions they held before Thursday when they launched an operation into the region.
The Georgian national council chief said the withdrawal was a show of goodwill, aimed at encouraging Russia to accept a cease-fire.
The official said about 200 Georgian soldiers and 37 Georgian civilians have died so far in Russia attacks.
The withdrawal comes after Russian forces launched an airstrike against a military airfield near the Tbilisi International Airport earlier in the day, Georgian officials told CNN.
The attack near the Georgian capital city came after intense fighting in the former Soviet republic, with dozens of Russian warplanes bombing civilian and military targets in Georgia on Saturday.
Alexander Lomaia, secretary of Georgia's National Security Council, said dozens of Georgian troops had lost their lives.
The situation in South Ossetia escalated rapidly from Thursday, when Georgia said it launched an operation into the region after its unilateral cease-fire was met with artillery fire from separatists that killed 10 people, including peacekeepers and civilians. It accused Russia of backing the separatists.
President George Bush, speaking from Beijing where he is attending the Olympic Games, called for an immediate halt to the violence, a stand-down by all troops and an end to the Russian bombings. He urged the sides to return to "the status quo of August the 6th." Video Watch Bush call for end to violence »
A White House spokesman said Bush spoke to Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Saturday.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who spoke to Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin at the Olympic opening ceremonies, also called for both sides to stand down and for "the full respect of Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity."
The United States, the European Union, and NATO are working toward a cease-fire, and the U.N. Security Council met behind closed doors to discuss the issue Saturday.
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Georgia, a pro-Western ally of the United States, is intent on asserting its authority over South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Both have strong Russian-backed separatist movements.
Inside South Ossetia, civilians have been without water, electricity and basic services for more than a day, said Maia Kardava, a Red Cross spokeswoman in Tbilisi. She said the Red Cross was unable to reach colleagues based in Tskhinvali because their phones had lost power and they were huddled in bomb shelters. |
CNN
So now that Georgians were apparently pushed back to where they started from, lets hope things calm down a bit. |
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| DrUg_Tit0 |
| quote: | Originally posted by aNYthing
So, imagine this situation:
Vermont decides to declare itself independent. US says "ummm. yeah, right". Vermont than asks Canada to consider it as part of its' territory, claiming that it never really became a part of US. Canada, then, decides to send its "peace keepers", saying that it has a large number of canadian citizens in the state that it needs to protect. The Canadian "peacekeepers" arrive with heavy artillery and tanks to the state.
I'm curious, how do you think US would react and what would happen if the same situation was unfolding, using territories and countries listed above. Now, consider that unlike Canada and US, Russian-Georgian relations have been very agressive over the last two years.
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Or imagine this situation:
Kosovo decides to declare itself independent. Serbia says "ummm. yeah, right". Kosovo than asks US to consider it as part of its' territory, claiming that it never really became a part of Serbia. US, then, decides to send its "peace keepers", saying that it has a large number of civilians in the state that it needs to protect. The US "peacekeepers" arrive with heavy artillery and tanks to the state.
Hell, why imagine, it has already happened! |
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| Magnetonium |
| quote: | Originally posted by DrUg_Tit0
Or imagine this situation:
Kosovo decides to declare itself independent. Serbia says "ummm. yeah, right". Kosovo than asks US to consider it as part of its' territory, claiming that it never really became a part of Serbia. US, then, decides to send its "peace keepers", saying that it has a large number of civilians in the state that it needs to protect. The US "peacekeepers" arrive with heavy artillery and tanks to the state.
Hell, why imagine, it has already happened! |
Hahahah, Tito, great analogy. Russia is becoming more like USA/NATO ... which is not the smartest choice, though they had to do it.
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anyTHING, pkc knows what he is talking about ... he's got a more neutral/western look at this situation than me ... |
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| Magnetonium |
Oh, jee ... as one would imagine, right now on Russian state television they are showing videos of the survivors in the war zone (recorded by survivors), Ossetians that is, them talking about the bombings, how some of their relatives were killed by Georgian forces, how some villages were burned up by Georgian special forces. Other digital phone videos showing women and children lying in the basements, to the sound of bombardments, screaming, crying ...
Yeah, yeah, I know, Russian propaganda, but there's some truth to it. This is just for your consideration and knowledge. And yes, they didnt show ethnic Georgian civilians and those stories, who died in Russian bombings outside of Ossetia's (Gori) ... |
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| DrUg_Tit0 |
| We'll see..it's probably over, but it still just might not be. We'll all be smarter tomorrow... |
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| guerra-monstru |
sorry for the large size |
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| jerZ07002 |
| quote: | Originally posted by guerra-monstru
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looks like there could be some great backcountry snowboarding in those mountains. |
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| DrUg_Tit0 |
| Watching all those Ladas still driving around really brings back memories of the good old days of socialism :) |
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| guerra-monstru |
| Bunch of pussies, Georgia has left the area, and now wants a cease-fire. Im thinking Russia will say no. |
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| DrUg_Tit0 |
| quote: | Originally posted by guerra-monstru
Bunch of pussies, Georgia has left the area, and now wants a cease-fire. Im thinking Russia will say no. |
Seriously, what else did you expect? |
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| guerra-monstru |
| quote: | Originally posted by DrUg_Tit0
Seriously, what else did you expect? |
I wanted to see Georgia stand up to Russia. Fighting Russia is not like you are fighting the US. Russia and Georgia are sortof on the same playing field. Except all what Georgia had to do was to stay on the defence and on the mountains. To force Russia to negotiate or bring in more troops. But the last thing i wanted to see was Russia going in and now planting itself in Georgia. |
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