Matt McCarten: US spin on Georgia war shows how vital it is to have free media
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/stor ... 412&pnum=0

In the United States, it seems the mainstream media fall in line frequently with their government's spin over international events. Most of the global news networks are owned and based in the US, and therefore tend to set the news agenda worldwide.

What is disturbing is how jingoistic and partisan the US news coverage is over the Georgia conflict. It is clearer to me now how these US news agencies were able to stir up public support after 9/11 to invade Afghanistan and then Iraq. It's frightening how the agencies have, in many ways, become a mouthpiece for their government's policy.

Their mainstream news stories would have us believe that the small, feisty and free democratic state of Georgia has been ruthlessly invaded by Russian thugs who are carrying out genocide and mass destruction. It's presented simply as a fight between good and evil.

Watching the US news, it's hard to understand that it was Georgia who started the bombing and killing in the region of South Ossetia.

Nor would Americans know that the Georgian military assault killed dozens of Russian peacekeepers and hundreds of civilians before Russia stepped in. The Russian reaction to this slaughter was predictable, particularly when we know some of the background to these events.

The Ossetian people have quite a distinctive culture and language that is very different from Georgia. South Ossetia is part of Georgia and North Ossetia is part of Russia. The only reason that the southern part of Ossetia is even in Georgia is because of Josef Stalin. He split Ossetia and put each half under the control of different warlords. With the collapse of communism these arbitrary divisions of ethnic nationalities was always going to unravel.

South Ossetia was opposed to being part of Georgia when it seceded from Russia. They fought a bloody independence war in the early 1990s to prevent absorption into the newly independent Georgia. Tens of thousands were killed and an agreement was reached where South Ossetia and another region, Abkhazia, would have a large element of autonomy. Russian peacekeepers would be stationed in these regions to ensure the peace was kept.

In addition, a wider agreement was also made with Georgia and all the other newly created bordering states to Russia that they would not become part of NATO (the western military alliance), nor would they allow foreign military bases in their countries.

But before the ink on these agreements was dry, American political consultants were creating and managing political parties that were anti-Russian. In Georgia, they helped create a new political party around Mikheil Saakashvili, who was educated and worked for many years in the US. This party swept out the pro-Russian government and then the real mischief began.

Saakashvili's first move was to get the US military to come into Georgia to arm and train his armed forces. Despite the early promises, the Bush administration, with most of Western Europe, actively supported Georgia to become part of NATO. As of last week, Georgia was America's ally in Iraq, second only to Britain.

Last week, it wasn't lost on Russia that it was the US air force that flew the Georgian troops from Iraq back to their country.

Like most wars, oil plays a major part. Saakashvili's provocative decision to allow the West to build a pipeline through his country from the Caspian oil fields as an alternative to the present one through Russia was just another straw on the back of Russia's camel. The West's recent enthusiasm to also unilaterally recognise Kosovo splitting from Serbia was another. Supporting ethnic communities to break away and form new countries was always going to come back and haunt the West, for what's good for Kosovo is also good for South Ossetia.

That the Georgian army invaded South Ossetia in violation of an agreement made with Russia and timed for the eve of the Olympics says it all. It was a calculated military assault to end South Ossetia's semi-autonomy and suppress their independence movement.

The Russians had warned the Americans that Saakashvili was an accident waiting to happen. They were apparently assured by the Americans that they'd keep him under control. But no one believes for a minute that the Americans hadn't given the Georgians a wink and a nod to invade while Putin was at the Olympics.

I think the US Government and their media believe their own rhetoric and spin. How else could they have believed that the Russians wouldn't slap Saakashvili down?

It's reassuring to see that the media in New Zealand provides us with a range of news sources rather than just relying on the American outlets. In this case, I think the media coverage of the conflict in Georgia has made New Zealanders better informed about why the war started. The US public and politicians still seem confused. I blame their media.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Putin's Winning Hand
Once the Atlantic Alliance is shattered, America's lifeline to the world is kaput
by Mike Whitney
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php? ... a&aid=9859

There are no military installations in the city of Tskhinvali. In fact, there are no military targets at all. It is an industrial center consisting of lumber mills, manufacturing plants and residential areas. It is also the home to 30,000 South Ossetians. When Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili ordered the city to be bombed by warplanes and shelled by heavy artillery last Thursday, he knew that he would be killing hundreds of civilians in their homes and neighborhoods. But he ordered the bombing anyway.

There was no "Battle of Tskhinvali"; that's another fiction. A battle implies that there is an opposing force that is resisting or fighting back. That's not the case here. The Georgian army entered the city unopposed; after all, how can unarmed civilians stop armed units. Most of the townspeople had already fled across the border into Russia or hid in their basements while the tanks and armored vehicles rumbled bye firing at anything that moved.

What took place in South Ossetia last Thursday, was not an invasion or a siege; it was a massacre. The people had no way to defend themselves against a fully-equiped modern army. It was a war crime.

In less than 24 hours, the Russian army was deployed to the war zone where it chased the Georgian army away without a fight. Journalist Michael Binyon put it like this, "The attack was short, sharp and deadly---enough to send the Georgians fleeing in humiliating panic." Indeed, the Georgians left in such haste that many of their weapons were left behind. It was a complete rout; another black-eye for the US and Israeli advisers who trained the clatter of thugs they call the Georgian army. Soon vendors on the streets of Tskhinvali will be hawking weapons that were left behind with a mocking sign: "Georgia Army M-16; Never used, dropped once."

By the time the army was driven out, the downtown area was in engulfed in flames and the bodies of those who had been killed by sniper-fire were strewn along the streets and sidewalks. Many of people who stayed behind were simply too old or infirm to leave. Instead, they huddled in their basements waiting for the shelling to stop. It was a bloodbath. The city's only hospital was deliberately targeted and destroyed; another war crime. By day's end, over 2,000 people were killed in an operation that was clearly engineered with the assistance of the Bush White House. Bush regards Saakashvilli as his main client in the region; they are friends. He is America's cat's paw in the Caucasus. Saakashvilli's assignment is to try to get Putin to overreact militarily and demonstrate to European allies that Russia still poses a threat to their national security. Fortunately, many Europeans see through the ruse and know that the trouble originates in Washington.

For the most part, Americans are still in the dark about what really happened last weekend. There's a great video circulating on the Internet by a Russian citizen that has been living in USA for the last 10 years. He sums up the role of the US media with great precision. He says, "The western media--especially CNN--is feeding you complete horseshit. Russia did not invade Georgia first." The youtube can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c26Q-qxDEA

The coverage of the western media has been abysmal. Nearly every article and TV news segment begins with accusations of Russian aggression concealing the fact that the Georgian Army bombarded and invaded the capital of South Ossetia one full day before the first Russian even tank crossed the border. By the time the Russians arrived, the city was already in a shambles and thousands were dead.

These facts are not in dispute by those who followed the developments as they took place. Now the media is revising the facts to manage public perceptions, just as they did with the fictional WMD in Iraq. Many people think that the media learned its lesson after they were exposed for using bogus information in the lead up to the war in Iraq. But that is not true. The corporate media--especially FOX News, CNN and PBS (the smug, liberal-sounding channel)---continue to operate like the propaganda arm of the Pentagon. Its disgraceful.

In a 2006 referendum, 99% of South Ossetians said they supported independence from Georgia. The voter turnout was 95% and the balloting was monitored by 34 international observers from the west. No one has challenged the results. The province has been under the protection of Russian and Georgian peacekeepers since 1992 and has been a de facto independent state ever since. If Putin applied the same standard as Bush did in Kosovo, he would unilaterally declare South Ossetia independent from Georgia and then thumb his nose at the UN. (Sauce for the goose, is sauce for the gander) But Putin and newly-elected Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have taken a conciliatory attitude towards the international community and tried to resolve the issue through diplomatic channels. So far, they have conducted themselves with restraint and avoided any confrontation.

Still, Russia's operation in South Ossetia has ignited a firestorm in the US political establishment and Democrats and Republicans alike are demanding that Russia be "taught a lesson". Condoleeza Rice flew to Tbilisi on Friday and ordered Russian combat troops to withdraw from Georgia immediately. Saakashvili topped off Rice's comments by saying that the Russian troops were "cold-blooded killers" and "barbarians". So much for reconciliation.

Saakashvili's hyperbolic rhetoric was followed by a surprise announcement from Poland that they had approved Bush's plans for deploying the Missile Defense Shield in Eastern Europe. The system is supposed to defend Europe from the possibility of attacks from so-called "rogue states" like Iran, but the Kremlin knows that it is intended to neutralize their nuclear arsenal. Political analyst William Engdahl explains the importance of the proposed system in his recent article, "Missile Defense: Washington and Poland just moved the World closer to War":

"The signing now insures an escalation of tensions between Russia and NATO and a new Cold War arms race in full force. It is important for readers to understand...the ability of one of two opposing sides to put anti-missile missiles to within 90 miles of the territory of the other in even a primitive first-generation anti-missile missile array gives that side virtual victory in a nuclear balance of power and forces the other to consider unconditional surrender or to pre-emptively react by launching its nuclear strike before 2012."

The new "shield" will be integrated into the larger US nuclear weapons system placing the world's most lethal weapons just a few hundred miles from Russia's capital. It is a clear threat to Russia's national security and it must be opposed at all cost. It is no different than nuclear weapons in Cuba. The timing of the announcement is particularly troubling as it only adds to the tensions between the two superpowers.

President Medvedev made this statement after hearing of Poland's decision: "This decision clearly demonstrates everything we have said recently. The deployment of new anti-missile forces in Europe is aimed at the Russian Federation."

It was President Ronald Reagan, the darling of the neoconservatives, who decided to remove short-range nuclear weapons from the European theater. Now, ironically, it is his ideological heir, George W. Bush, who is on track to restart the Cold War by putting a high-tech nuclear system on Russia's perimeter. The younger Bush has already broken his father's commitment to Mikail Gorbachev to never expand NATO beyond Germany. Presently, Bush is pushing to gain NATO membership for two former-Soviet states; Ukraine and Georgia. If they are approved, then any future dispute with Russia will pit the United States and Europe against Moscow. It's no wonder Putin is trying to derail the process.

The Bush administration has been planning for a confrontation with Russia for more than a year. In fact, Raw Story reported on operations that were conducted by the military on July 14, 2008 which were probably a dress rehearsal for the current conflict. According to Raw Story:

"US troops on Monday (July 14) began military exercises near the Russian border in ex-Soviet Ukraine and were poised to launch them in Georgia, amid tense relations between Moscow and Washington. A ceremony inaugurating the Sea Breeze-2008 NATO exercise was held off Ukraine's Black Sea coast against anti-NATO protests and a hostile reaction from officials in Russia. Sea Breeze-2008...includes forces from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Latvia, Macedonia and Turkey...'The US-Georgia joint exercises will be held at the Vaziani military base' less than 100 kilometers (60 miles) from the Russian border with a total of 1,650 servicemen taking part."

So, it appears the Bush administration, working in conjunction with the Pentagon, did have contingency plans for dealing with a flare-up with Georgia. The real question is whether or not they planned to initiate those hostilities to advance their own regional agenda? No one knows for sure.

Now that Georgia's American-trained army has been humiliated in front of the world, Bush is trying desperately to save face by demanding that Russia allow the US Air force to deliver humanitarian aid via C-17 military aircraft to the tens of thousands of Georgians who were displaced in the fighting. It is worth noting that, as yet, Bush has never delivered as much as a bag of rice to the 2 million Iraqi refugees living in Jordan and Syria due to his war in Iraq. Bush's magnanimity is not only suspect, it also creates real problems for Putin who will have to decide whether the offer is sincere or just a ploy to open up the ports and airfields so that more weaponry and ordnance can be delivered. As Barry Grey suggests in his article "Bush Dispatches US Military forces to Georgia" the humanitarian operation could be a scam:

"This is a formula for an injection of US military and naval forces into Georgia of indeterminate scope and duration. It will certainly involve the presence of hundreds if not thousands of uniformed US military personnel on the ground, and a substantial number of warships in the region. The US is introducing this military force into a situation that remains highly unstable and combustible, raising the possibility of a direct military clash between the United States and Russia."

Grey is right, but what choice does Putin have? His task is to avoid a military confrontation with the United States while demonstrating to his Europeon partners that their future lies with Russia not America. That's the real goal. To achieve that, he needs to expose Bush as reckless, petulant, and incapable of being a responsible steward of the global system. Maybe Putin will have to back-down at some point and swallow his pride; it makes no difference. What matters, is the endgame; showing that Russia is strong and dependable and will provide its European allies with oil and natural gas in a businesslike manner. That's the winning hand. Meanwhile, the United States will be forced to take a long-overdue look in the mirror and revisit its strategy for perennial war. Unfortunately, once the Atlantic Alliance is shattered; America's lifeline to the world is kaput.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Canadian Reader's Comment on The US Missile Defense Shield located in Poland directed against Russia
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php? ... a&aid=9860

"The appropriate parallel would be for Canada to offer to have Russian missiles located in Canada to protect everyone from any possible Rogue States. We have one next door."

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

US Military Crushes Bush Planned Nuclear Attack On Iran
August 14, 2008
By: Sorcha Faal, and as reported to her Western Subscribers
http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/index1126.htm



Sister Nikolaevna’s latest report from Vladikavkaz [see her previous report] has put into greater context the strategies being employed by Colonel-General Anatoly Nogovitsyn’s battle plan for countering the Western invasion of the Russian protected enclave of South Ossetia.

According to these reports, the August 8th unprovoked attack by US and Israeli led Georgian Special Forces Troops upon South Ossetia, and which cost the lives of over 2,000 innocent civilians, was deliberately timed to coincide with Prime Minister Putin’s absence from Moscow as he was attending the opening ceremony for the 2008 Beijing Olympic games and it was believed he would not be able to rapidly respond to the full measure of the American President’s plan for continued Global conquest.

The American President and his fellow War Leaders, however, grossly underestimated Putin, who upon learning of the US backed invasion of South Ossetia directly confronted Bush, and as we can read as witnessed by Australia’s Prime Minister Kevin Rudd:

“Mr Rudd revealed in an interview with Beijing Now in Beijing on Saturday that he was sitting just two rows behind Mr Bush when an "animated" discussion between he and Mr Putin broke out over Russia's advance into South Ossetia, a breakaway region in neighbouring Georgia.

"The President and Mr Putin were in animated conversation two seats in front of us and I imagine they had a few things on their agenda," Mr Rudd said. Mr Rudd said that Mr Bush appeared to be making a strong point to the Russian Prime Minister, even as the world's elite athletes filed into Beijing's Bird's Nest stadium.”

Putin’s greatest anger towards Bush, these reports continue, was his foreknowledge that the invasion of South Ossetia by Western led forces was a subterfuge maneuver designed in an attempt to cover the Americans true objective, a limited nuclear strike upon Iran’s nuclear facilities, and of which the US War Leader had already given the order to strike.

Putin’s rapid response to these machinations, however, led to his swiftly contacting the top leadership of the United States Military Command whereupon they swiftly ‘crushed’ their own President’s war plans and removed from the American Nuclear Weapons Chain of Command the US Naval Officer who conspired with Bush to plunge our World into Total War.

To this prompt dismissal of this US Naval Officer we can read as reported by the Associated Press News Service:

“The commander of a Navy air reconnaissance squadron that provides the president and the defense secretary the airborne ability to command the nation's nuclear weapons has been relieved of duty, the Navy said Tuesday. Cmdr. Shawn Bentley was relieved of duty Monday by the Navy for loss of confidence in his ability to command, only three months after taking the job.” Here.

American Military Commanders went even further to placate Putin by ‘immediately’ informing Israel that the US would not assist them in their plans to attack Iran, and as we can read as reported by China’s Xinhua News Service:

“Israeli government spokespersons Wednesday declined to comment that the American administration has rejected an Israeli request for military equipment and support to attack Iran's nuclear facilities, local daily Ha'aretz reported.

The report said that the Americans viewed the request, which was transmitted (and rejected) at the highest level, as a sign that Israel is in the advanced stages of preparation to attack Iran. They therefore warned Israel against attacking, saying such a strike would undermine American interest.”

It is also important to note that Russian FSB forces captured one of Georgia’s top intelligence officials, and who described in depth to American plan to begin a terror campaign against the Russian Homeland.

As is always the case in these more frequently erupting crises, the American people themselves are continually denied the true knowledge of the events that are marching them towards Total War and the full horrors it will bring upon them.

To which faction of the United States War Leadership will ultimately prevail it is not to our knowing, except to note that American people themselves have lost the ability to see the true motives of the monsters who are leading them towards destruction.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

[font=Georgia]Ok i'm not sure how many of you are following this thread but those who are please tell me i'm wrong. This is WWIII... The Georgia/South Ossetia incident was the false flag!! The U.S. supported, funded and told Georgia to attack South Ossetia knowing Russia would do the right thing and stop the bloodshed. So Russia did the right thing and since has been smeared by mainstream, and blamed the aggressor. Now the U.S. is taking it further by bullying and intimidation,?? The same way Bush said 4 days ago is no way to conduct foreign policy in the 21st century?? Orwellian!!! Now not only is the U.S doing this publically, they now have their propaganda media machine working at full force. Can you believe the U.S. is saying another country is taking to long to withdraw their troops?? Now here it is Russia will not be bullied like this and I don't blame them, it's embarrassing and uncalled for, Russia also knows the dirty tricks being played by the U.S. media. Mainstream media is prepping the people for war and the U.S. is instigating a war with Russia. Russia will eventually say F*CK YOU to America then America will strike. Us Canadians are right in the middle of an all out nuclear fight!!! Tell me i'm wrong and why, because I dont want to be right about this.[/font]

Russia, US ramp up war of words ahead of NATO talks on Georgia
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080818/ts ... nflictnato

Russia military actions a "dangerous game": Rice
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080818/pl_ ... ia_rice_dc

Defense Official: Russia Has Short Range Missiles in South Ossetia
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,405242,00.html

Russian president slams Georgia's 'morons'
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/08 ... index.html

Russian Troops Due to Leave Georgia
Unclear Whether Russia Will Pull Out or Pull Back
http://abcnews.go.com/International/sto ... 758&page=1

Russia 'starts Georgia pull-back'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7567184.stm

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Russian General Says Georgia May Commit False Flag Terror Attacks
Nogovitsyn: Mercenaries working for Georgians may disguise themselves as Russians
Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet
Monday, August 18, 2008
http://www.prisonplanet.com/russian-gen ... tacks.html




Deputy Chief of the Russian General Staff Anatoly Nogovitsyn warns that Georgia may be planning to commit false flag terror attacks by using mercenaries dressed in Russian uniforms, as Russia moved to guard sensitive infrastructure against terrorist attacks.

In a news briefing on Monday, he said: “I cannot rule out that they might use mercenaries with Slavic appearance for a provocation, clad in the uniform of Russian servicemen, in order to commit subversive acts both on Ossetian and Russian territory.”

In response to the threat, Russia has stationed troops around the Inguri Hydroelectric Plant, viewed as a potential target.

Nogovitsyn’s warning that Georgia may resort to subversion in order to enhance its well-groomed image of being the victim of a war that it started with the horrific bombardment of civilian targets in South Ossetia on August 8th, arrives amidst more examples of pro-Georgian western media bias.

Following in the footsteps of the BBC, Rupert Murdoch’s Sky News used footage of the South Ossetian capital, Tskhinvali in ruins after the Georgian assault and claimed it was the Georgian town of Gori after it was attacked by the Russians.

In reality, 70% of Tskhinvali was destroyed, whereas Gori suffered relatively little damage according to a United Nations aid convoy.

“Russia ’s TV channel Zvezda, which has five camera crews working in Tskhinvali, aired the same footage two days before, on Monday,” reports Pravda. “Sky News showed its report with no sound, whereas the people showed in the Russian report could be heard speaking Russian and Ossetian languages. The crying people shown in the report were heard cursing Georgian President Saakashvili for destructions and manslaughter.”

After the controversy came to light yesterday, the Sky News clip was quickly pulled from You Tube.

In addition, CNN last week showed Georgian forces attacking Russian civilians in Tskhinvali, the provincial capital of South Ossetia, but then claimed it showed Russians attacking Georgians in the Georgian town of Gori.

A 12-year-old American girl who was caught up in the brutal assault by Georgia on South Ossetia attempted to tell the truth about who the real aggressors were during a live Fox News interview, but she was quickly silenced by the host.

Western media coverage of the conflict has reflected a virulently pro-Georgia bias since the very start, once again proving that the press is not independent, but simply a mouthpiece for the same Anglo-American power structure for whom Georgia is merely another client state.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Wow see!! They are going after Russia!!
Orwellian - It connotes an attitude and a policy of control by propaganda, misinformation, denial of truth, and manipulation of the past. Text book orwellian article, completly opposite.

Orwellian
"They see Vladimir Putin's Russia as disparaging civil society, reverting to brute strength with small nations, seeking empire, and exploiting divisions inside Europe, and between Europe and the US. Russia is not a 'status quo' power under Mr. Putin, they say, but rather willing to change principles in pursuit of greatness".
Reality
"They see George W. Bush's America as disparaging civil society, reverting to brute strength with small nations, seeking empire, and exploiting divisions inside Europe, and between Europe and Russia. America is not a 'status quo' power under Mr. Bush, they say, but rather willing to change principles in pursuit of greatness".

Orwellian
Most Poles will agree that Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili made a serious mistake in trying to enter South Ossetia with force. But they feel it was an error that Russia seized upon in a planned operation to annex Ossetia and Abkhazia, where they say a new millionaire class in Moscow is rapidly buying up coastal property.
Reality
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili commited Genocide, Slaughter and Bloodshed in trying to enter South Ossetia with force. But they feel it was an error that Russia stopped the Genocide in a planned operation to aid Ossetia and Abkhazia.

Orwellian
"Now it is back to basics," he adds. "For us, it is all about staying out of the Russian sphere. We forgot about Russia for a decade. Now as Frankenstein is being reassembled under a former KGB chief, we remember it again."
Reality
Orwellian - It connotes an attitude and a policy of control by propaganda, misinformation, denial of truth, and manipulation of the past.


'New Europe' urges West to rethink Russian ties
http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/onextdoor
By Robert Marquand
Mon Aug 18, 4:00 AM ET

Warsaw - They live in a historically battered region between West and East, the Rhine and the Volga, Berlin and Moscow. Now, as Russian tanks rumble in Georgia, the states of "new Europe" are urging the West to rethink its relationship with Russia and are pushing for new security and strong measures against an aggressive Moscow they say they know all too well.

From Poland to Ukraine, the Czech Republic to Bulgaria, Russia's invasion of Georgia with tanks, troops, and planes is described as a test of Western resolve. The former Soviet states are vowing to thwart Russian aims – in deals with the European Union, in a missile-defense pact with the US, and in trade and diplomacy.

Polish and Baltic officials, most of whom grew up under Soviet occupation, have long chafed at being described in Western Europe as too "Russia-phobic" in their oft-repeated warnings about Moscow's intentions. But now in this gritty capital, the refrain is, "We told you so."

The strength of Polish feeling against Russia is measured by the quick completion of a US missile defense pact last week, after 18 months of wrangling in Warsaw and Washington. While the US has stoutly argued that the missiles were meant as a shield against rogue attacks from Iran, their strategic value here has apparently shifted. Polish opposition to hosting 10 proposed missile silos dropped by 30 percent in the week after Russia's military move in Georgia, according to polls in Warsaw.

"The events in the Caucasus show clearly that such security guarantees are indispensable," said Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

Ukrainian officials now say they encourage talks with the US on a similar shield. The suggestion over the weekend came despite Russian deputy military chief Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn's warning that Poland's missile shield would expose it to a Russian attack. "Poland, by deploying ... is exposing itself to a strike – 100 percent," said General Nogovitsyn.

In recent years "new" Europe has tussled with "old," with Germany in particular, over NATO expansion for Georgia – most recently in April at the alliance summit in Bucharest, Romania, where Berlin opposed it. Former Soviet states now in NATO argue that Western ideas about liberal reform in Russia were naive at best and self-serving at worst: They see Vladimir Putin's Russia as disparaging civil society, reverting to brute strength with small nations, seeking empire, and exploiting divisions inside Europe, and between Europe and the US. Russia is not a 'status quo' power under Mr. Putin, they say, but rather willing to change principles in pursuit of greatness.

Most Poles will agree that Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili made a serious mistake in trying to enter South Ossetia with force. But they feel it was an error that Russia seized upon in a planned operation to annex Ossetia and Abkhazia, where they say a new millionaire class in Moscow is rapidly buying up coastal property.

"When we woke up and saw Russian tanks in Georgia, we knew very well what this meant," says Bartosz Weglarczyk, foreign editor of Gazeta Wyborcza. "The Russian talk about helping others and bringing peace to Georgia.... We don't buy it. When did Moscow ever enter a country without 'bringing peace?'

"Now it is back to basics," he adds. "For us, it is all about staying out of the Russian sphere. We forgot about Russia for a decade. Now as Frankenstein is being reassembled under a former KGB chief, we remember it again."

But few Poles believe Moscow is ready to use military force as far east as Poland, lacking the discipline required by the grand ideas of Marxism and shown in Soviet days. "The Russians want to keep their money, their property in Monaco and Palm Beach, and have a good life," says one official. Moscow will, however, seek to exploit weakness and divisions in the West, say Polish diplomats, officials, and citizens, in a new type of energy and economic war of which Georgia is an example.

Five presidents from East Europe traveled to Georgia last week to show solidarity and to challenge Russia. East European states are reexamining their policy of allowing dual passports that can be used by Russia as a reason for entering their country, as was done in South Ossetia. Ukraine wants to limit the Russian Navy's use of its ports. EU members from the East vow to block new Russian efforts for a liberal trade deal. Polish President Lech Kaczynski criticized Germany and France for mollifying Russia in order to protect commercial interests. Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves argues vociferously that Georgia should still be admitted to NATO.

E. Europeans saw Georgia coming
The question of NATO membership remains sensitive in East Europe. Many Poles say they understand the aspirations of Georgians to join, and feel sympathy that those aspirations have been dashed. The question for small states in Russia's backyard is not a neutral one – for a small country being eyed by a powerful Russia seeking to expand its influence.

"The Eastern Europeans totally saw this [Russian resurgence] coming," says former US ambassador to Romania, James Rosapepe. "In Romania the attitude was, we have to get into NATO before Russian power returns."

German officials and many European NATO officials argue that it is simply unrealistic to provoke Russia by allowing its immediate neighbors into the alliance. They say Russia's actions in Georgia vindicates this point. Berlin takes a very careful and consistent position on the importance of understanding Moscow, one Western diplomat points out.

Yet Polish officials are quick to point out that Germany was the most powerful and insistent voice throughout the 1990s for getting Poland into NATO – as a way to create a buffer zone between Germany and Russia. Now that Poland is in NATO, Germany has changed its tune, they say, showing indifference to Poland's own interests in a similar buffer zone. They argue it is in Germany's commercial interest to advocate balanced restraint and sensitivity to Moscow.

Poland's view: 'While America slept'
In the immediate years after Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev decided to release Eastern Europe from the Soviet bloc, US efforts to expand NATO were robust. Yet as Russian power appeared to be waning, and as the US became involved in a war on terror and in Iraq, Eastern Europe and the Caucasus received less and less attention and material support from the US and Western Europe – even as it became clearer in the East that Russia under Putin was gaining strength with every rise in the cost of a barrel of oil.

So popular in Poland was the US after the cold war that Poles joked that their country was the 51st state. Yet the enthusiasm has waned somewhat during the Iraq war; Poles sent troops but has removed them. Here there's a widespread view that Iraq was a mistake for the Americans.

"Poles look at the events transpiring in Georgia from the perspective of 'while America slept,'" says James Hooper, a former senior US diplomat based in Warsaw. "They understand that Russia's mainspring expansionist impulse can be deflected only by a steady US policy in managing European security affairs, and thus pin everything on American power, purpose and resolve."

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Despite pledge to withdraw, Russians seize more ground in Georgia
By Tom Lasseter and Shashank Bengali, McClatchy Newspapers
Mon Aug 18, 6:02 PM ET
http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/20080 ... hy/3021530

IGOETI, Georgia — Despite assurances that it would withdraw troops from Georgia starting Monday, the Russian military operated with impunity as its forces moved convoys in and out of the city of Gori and plowed through a police roadblock in this town some 25 miles northwest of Tbilisi , the capital.

In Washington , senior defense officials cited "troubling" intelligence that Russia had set up short-range ballistic missile launchers in South Ossetia . The SS-21 missiles have a range of 40 to 70 miles, meaning they can reach the capital from practically any part of South Ossetia , which Russian forces now occupy.

The officials, who refused to be identified due to the sensitivity of the subject, also said there was no significant Russian movement out of Georgia .

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Monday the United States and its allies will not allow Russia to gain a strategic victory in Georgia . She also warned Russia that it is playing a "very dangerous game" by resuming Cold War-era strategic bomber patrols off the Alaskan coast. Rice was en route to an emergency meeting of NATO on the Georgia crisis.

The United States , which has refused to send direct military aid to Georgia , continued providing what officials said were humanitarian supplies. Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said three C-17's and one C-9 transport planes flew to Georgia Monday, and as of Tuesday, there will be a daily flight of a C-17 cargo plane.

The deputy head of the Russian military's general staff, Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn , told reporters in Moscow Monday that Russian troops were being drawn back to the breakaway region of South Ossetia , which sits just on the Georgia - Russia border.

McClatchy journalists working in both the west and center of the country saw little to indicate that was happening. As has been the case throughout the 10-day conflict - which began with a Georgian military move into South Ossetia - Russian commanders seemed intent on showing they controlled the ground.

Russian forces dominated the country's vital road and rail arteries, held military bases they had seized from the Georgian army, and occupied Gori, a strategically important city and the birthplace of the late Soviet dictator Josef Stalin.

Military convoys continued to move in and out of Gori all afternoon, including tanks and an anti-aircraft gun. The day before, dozens of Russian supply trucks were seen driving from the direction of South Ossetia into the city.

The scene at Igoeti made plain the Russian eagerness to demonstrate its military prowess.

A Russian army officer approached a Georgian police checkpoint leading off the main road and demanded that the Georgians clear the way.

"You have five minutes to move your cars," he told the Georgian policeman. And then it was three minutes. The Georgian, addressing the Russian as "Mr. Colonel," pleaded: "I have an order, I cannot move my cars."

A few minutes later, the Russian waved his hand, and an armored fighting vehicle plowed through the roadblock of Georgian police cars, its tracks crushing into their sides.

Russian armor positions were parked alongside the road between Gori and Igoeti, with some soldiers lounging on their vehicles and others manning machine guns. The young men in dirty uniforms did not look tense; Russian flags flapped on top some of their trucks, deep in the heart of Georgia .

On the outskirts of Igoeti, a Russian soldier shrugged when asked if he was withdrawing anytime soon, saying: "We'll probably be here tomorrow."

A Russian soldier standing near the entrance of Gori said that, "When we are finished, we will drink some Georgian wine."

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev again charged Monday that Georgia had provoked the clash 10 days ago by sending forces into South Ossetia , a region in North Georgia that Tbilisi wants to control. "We shall do our best to not let this crime go unpunished," state newswires quoted Medvedev as saying.

He said those who attack Russian citizens in the future will "face a crushing response." He omitted to mention that Russia has given Russian passports to many residents of South Ossetia , and to residents in its fellow rebel province in the west, Abkhazia .

Georgian politicians maintain that the Russian presence has little to do with the plight of the South Ossetians and is an attempt to cut off Georgia's close relations with the west. Georgia has applied for membership to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization , and wants to join the Europe Union as well.

"The goal of the attack was to undermine Georgia's independence," Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said Monday. The Russian foreign ministry poured scorn on Saakashvili. "For reasons that any sensible persons will understand, we do not regard Mikhail Saakashvili as a negotiating partner," it said in a statement.

In western Georgia , along the second flank of the Russian offensive, there was no evidence of a Russian pullback by mid-afternoon. As they had the day before, Russian tanks occupied the regional police compound in and around Zugdidi, near the breakaway region of Abkhazia . In the morning, a convoy of 12 Russian military vehicles, including three tanks, rolled south toward the key Black Sea port of Poti.

Few civilian cars moved along the 30-mile stretch of road connecting Poti and Zugdidi. And beyond Zugdidi, in the villages closest to the edge of Abkhazia , there were almost no vehicles at all.

Around midday, at the last checkpoint before Abkhazia , a taxi driver waited in vain for clients crossing the border into Georgian-controlled territory. Kuladi Todua, the driver, said the only vehicles that crossed through that day were Russian military trucks.

Lasseter reported from Igoeti and Bengali reported from Zugdidi. Nancy A. Youssef in Washington and Jonathan P. Landay in Brussels contributed

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Fears of power vacuum as Russia pulls out
Russian military forces are returning to their starting positions in the Georgian-South Ossetian conflict zone – despite fears of a power vacuum which Russian military officials believe may prompt more action by Georgia.
August 19, 2008, 3:52
http://www.russiatoday.com/news/news/29140

The withdrawal is part of a six-point plan drawn-up by Russia and France and follows a weekend conversation between President Dmitry Medvedev and French leader Nicolas Sarkozy.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Chief of the Russian General Staff, Anatoly Nogovitsyn, has said Georgian units are attempting to increase their combat readiness and have intensified ‘subversive’ operations against Russian servicemen.

The troops will take up the posts they held before the outbreak of fighting, and as defined in a 1999 agreement.

Russian troops are no longer acting under the assumption that South Ossetia is a part of Georgia, so will go to the border between South Ossetia and Georgia. Some troops will remain stationed in Tskhinvali.

Russia has also stressed the need for Georgia to also return its forces to agreed positions.

However, local people are not treating the news of Russia’s exit favourably, as most Ossetians perceive them as saviours. There are fears among some of them that if the Russians leave, Georgia might launch another attack.

Nonetheless, it is hoped that the withdrawal will help bring stability back to South Ossetia.

Life there is already beginning its attempts to return to some sense of normality.

According to Russia's migration ministry, out of 37,000 refugees that left for Russia during the conflict, 8,000 have already returned to South Ossetia.

Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry has announced that the country is submitting complaints of war crimes by the Georgian army in the South Ossetian conflict to the International Criminal Court in the Hague.

Russia wants to be respected - Medvedev

Russia's President has praised soldiers combating what he called, 'Georgia’s cowardly aggression'. Dmitry Medvedev says the crime against the entire ethnic group in South Ossetia won’t be left unpunished.

"The world has now seen that even in our time there are political freaks who kill people to achieve their selfish goals and who compensate for their lack of intelligence an a most terrible way by destroying an entire people. We will make sure that this crime is not left unpunished," he said.

The Russian President made the comments during his visit to the North Ossetian capital Vladikavkaz.

He awarded medals to servicemen involved in the conflict and promised financial help to the families of troops who had been killed. He said the conduct of the operation proved the military had become stronger and more efficient, and he promised further funding to upgrade the army.

Earlier Medvedev said Russia does not want to worsen international tensions, but does want to be respected. He warned that any aggression against Russia's people or interests would be met with a firm response.

"We've always been a peaceful state,” he said. “But if anyone thinks they can get away with killing our citizens, soldiers and officers who are carrying out a peacekeeping mission, we will not allow this. Anyone who tries to do something of the kind will receive a crushing response. We have all the capabilities - economic, political and military."

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

U.S. signs controversial missile defense deal with Poland
Wed Aug 20, 7:55 AM
By Vanessa Gera And Monika Scislowska, The Associated Press
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/0808 ... le_defence

WARSAW, Poland - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her Polish counterpart signed a deal Wednesday to build a missile defense base in Poland, an agreement that prompted an infuriated Russia to warn of a possible attack against the former Soviet satellite.


The deal to install 10 U.S. interceptor missiles just 185 kilometres from Russia's westernmost frontier also has strained relations between Moscow and the West, ties that already troubled by Russia's invasion of its former Soviet neighbor, U.S. ally Georgia, earlier this month.


Rice and Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski signed the deal Wednesday morning.


"It is an agreement which will help us to respond to the threats of the 21st century," she said afterward.


Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the agreement came after tough but friendly negotiations.


"We have achieved our main goals, which means that our country and the United States will be more secure," he said.


After Warsaw and Washington announced the agreement on the deal last week, top Russian Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn warned that Poland is risking attack, and possibly a nuclear one, by deploying the American missile defense system, Russia's Interfax news agency reported.


Poles have been shaken by the threats, but NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop dismissed them Tuesday as "pathetic rhetoric."


"It is unhelpful and it leads nowhere," he told reporters at a NATO meeting in Brussels, Belgium.


Many Poles consider the agreement a form of protection at a time when Russia's invasion of Georgia has generated alarm throughout Eastern Europe. Poland is a member of the European Union and NATO, and the deal is expected to deepen its military partnership with Washington.


Polish President Lech Kaczynski also expressed "great satisfaction" at the outcome of the long months of negotiations.


Poland and the United States spent a year and a half negotiating, and talks recently had snagged on Poland's demands that the U.S. bolster Polish security with Patriot missiles in exchange for hosting the missile defense base.


Washington agreed to do so last week, as Poland invoked the Georgia conflict to strengthen its case.


The Patriots are meant to protect Poland from short-range missiles from neighbours - such as Russia.


The U.S. already has reached an agreement with the government in Prague to place the second component of the missile defense shield - a radar tracking system - in the Czech Republic, Poland's southwestern neighbor and another formerly communist country.


Approval is still needed from the Czech and Polish parliaments.


No date has been set for the Polish parliament to consider the agreement, but it should face no difficulties in Warsaw, where it enjoys the support of the largest opposition party as well as the government.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Russia warns of backlash for U.S., Poland missile deal
Last Updated: Wednesday, August 20, 2008
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/08/2 ... hield.html


U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Polish President Lech Kaczynski shake hands after a meeting in Warsaw on Wednesday. Rice was in Warsaw to sign a deal that will see a U.S. missile defence base built in northern Poland. (Alik Keplicz/Associated Press)


Russia lashed out at a deal signed Wednesday to place a U.S. missile defence base in Poland, warning that Moscow may respond with more than just diplomatic measures.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said the U.S. missile shield plans are clearly aimed at weakening Russia and that Moscow's response to any development beyond the current plans will go beyond diplomacy.

The warning came amid severe tension between Russia and the U.S. over the conflict in Georgia.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski signed the agreement in a ceremony in the Polish capital, Warsaw.

The deal is still to be ratified in the Polish parliament, but observers have said the measure should pass easily.

Rice hailed the agreement and praised Poland as a "strong defender of freedom, even in dark times."

"Freedom can be denied for a while, but it cannot be denied forever," Rice told reporters at the ceremony. "In troubled times it is most important to have friends."

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the agreement came after tough, but friendly negotiations.

"We have achieved our main goals, which means that our country and the United States will be more secure," he said.

Moscow has angrily insisted the presence of U.S. missiles near its border is a threat to the national security of Russia, which held Poland under its yoke for much of the latter half of the 20th century.

In the wake of the deal being announced last week, one of Russia's top military officials, Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn, warned that Poland is risking attack, and possibly a nuclear one, Russia's Interfax news agency reported.

The U.S. has said the missile defence system, which includes a proposed tracking base in the Czech Republic, is designed to protect against potential missile strikes from so-called "rogue" states such as Iran and North Korea.

The agreement comes amid high tensions between Washington and Moscow over Russia's recent military campaign in Georgia.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Norway says Russia plans to cut military ties with NATO; U.S. regrets move
2 hours, 19 minutes ago
By The Associated Press
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/0808 ... ussia_nato

OSLO, Norway - Russia has informed Norway that it plans to cut all military ties with NATO, Norway's Defence Ministry said Wednesday.


The Nordic country's embassy in Moscow received a telephone call from "a well-placed official in the Russian Ministry of Defence," who said Moscow plans "to freeze all military co-operation with NATO and allied countries," State Secretary Espen Barth Eide at the Norwegian ministry said.


Eide told The Associated Press that the Russian official notified Norway it will receive a written note about this soon. He said Norwegian diplomats in Moscow would meet Russian officials Thursday morning to clarify the implications of the freeze.


"It is our understanding that other NATO countries will receive similar notes," Eide said.


Russian officials were not immediately available to confirm the report, and the Russian ambassador to NATO did not reply to messages left on his cellphone.


Officials at NATO headquarters in Brussels said Moscow had not informed the alliance it was taking such a step.


Washington described the reported move as unfortunate.


"If this indeed is the case, it would be unfortunate. We need to work with Russia on a range of security issues, but we are obviously very concerned about Russian behaviour in Georgia," U.S. State Department spokesman Robert Wood said.


On Tuesday, NATO foreign ministers said they would make further ties with Russia dependent on Moscow making good on a pledge to pull its troops back to pre-conflict positions in Georgia. However, they stopped short of calling an immediate halt to all co-operation.


Eide said he hoped NATO and Moscow would get back on track with dialogue and co-operation but said that Russia would first have to comply with a ceasefire in Georgia.


"I regret the situation has come to this," he said.


The hostilities between Russia and Georgia began earlier this month when Georgia cracked down on South Ossetia. The region is internationally recognized as being within Georgian borders but leans toward Moscow and regards itself as independent. Russia answered by sending its troops and tanks across the Georgian border.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[font=Georgia]Notice the Closing statement..[/font]



[font=Georgia]Misinformation!! Propaganda!!
It down plays Georgia's aggression "Georgia cracked down on South Ossetia." This article is saying that a crack down is the same as genocide?
Also it states Big Bad Russia answered to this so-called "crack down" by sending their troops and tanks over, but forgot to mention that Russia did this because of the Georgian slaughter of the Ossetians.[/font]

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

War killed 1,492 Ossetians - local officials
August 21, 2008, 0:12
http://www.russiatoday.com/news/news/29271

Officials in South Ossetia have released the number of people killed during Georgia's failed military offensive to win control of the region. Authorities in the capital Tskhinvali say 1,492 Ossetians lost their lives in the conflict.

According to Anatoly Nogovitsyn, Deputy Chief of Staff at the Russian Defence Ministry, who was speaking at a news conference on Wednesday, 64 Russian soldiers were killed in action and 323 were wounded.

To watch the full news conference click here.

Meanwhile, more than 5,000 people from South Ossetia are still in refugee camps in the south of Russia.

Approximately 30,000 people fled from Georgia’s offensive on August 8. According to officials, some 15,000 of them have returned over the last week.

Jewish neighbourhood trashed

It was not only South Ossetians who suffered as a result of Georgia's attack on Tskhinvali. An entire Jewish neighbourhood has been wiped out as well.

Witnesses on the ground say it's now hard to find a home that's left intact in the district where dozens of Jewish families used to live.

RT found only Jewish family remaining in war-torn Tskhinvali - Link

Tskhinvali restoration

Russia's Emergencies Ministry says it needs the help of local people to rebuild South Ossetia's devastated infrastructure. Progress is being made and restoration work is in full swing, with the water supply to the capital Tskhinvali having been almost been fully restored. Another key task is to repair broken windows before cold weather sets in.

The authorities have pledged to restore schools before September 1 and hospitals are also at the top of the reconstruction list.

Many foreign journalists have received accreditation to work in the region and are being given guided tours by local officials to show them the scale of the damage and devastation.

Locals’ reaction to the pull-out of Russian troops from Georgia has been negative. They fear with Russian forces out of the region, Georgia might attack again.

Russian combat engineers are still involved in mine-clearing operations in South Ossetia and they're still finding unexploded mines and artillery shells across the region.

Russia is to spend $US 60 million by the end of the year on the reconstruction of South Ossetia’s infrastructure.

The Chechen Republic has also joined the humanitarian aid programme for the region. It is providing food and construction materials.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Georgian authorities block Russian aid for Gori
August 19, 2008, 15:47
http://www.russiatoday.com/news/news/29217

The city authorities of Gori have refused humanitarian aid from Russia. A convoy carrying food for the Georgian city was ordered on Monday to return to Tskhinvali, according to the Russian Emergencies Ministry.

The humanitarian convoy was unloading its cargo at a local church in preparation for its later distribution when a man came and demanded that the trucks left. He reportedly said the city needed no help, according to ITAR TASS news agency.

The ministry has been making a daily delivery ofng 40 to 45 tonnes of food to Georgia for the last four days, said Emergencies Minister Sergey Shoigu on Monday. The normal food supply was disrupted after local authorities fled from advancing Russian troops.

Russia is now withdrawing its military contingent from Gori. Last Thursday it handed over control of law and order in the city to Georgian police.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

No Russia-NATO ties until Georgia crisis resolved: US
Thu Aug 21, 1:10 PM
CRAWFORD, Texas (AFP)
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/080821/u ... house_nato

CRAWFORD, Texas (AFP) - The White House on Thursday demanded that Moscow withdraw its forces "now" from Georgia and warned there can be no Russia-NATO military cooperation until the volatile crisis is over.

"I can't imagine a circumstance right now that we would engage in military cooperation with the Russians until the situation in Georgia is resolved," US National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe told reporters.


Johndroe declared Russia had violated its promise, under a French-brokered ceasefire deal, to withdraw its forces to where they were before a Georgian offensive into the breakaway region of South Ossetia around August 6.


"Russia is in violation of the commitments that they have made," he told reporters as US President George W. Bush watched the crisis from his Texas ranch. "The withdrawal needs to take place, and needs to take place now."


"The withdrawal is not happening very quickly, if it in fact has begun," said Johndroe. "The Russians are making some decisions that are not in line with a commitment to become part of a Europe whole, free and at peace."


"We are hopeful for the day that we will be able to resume military cooperation with the Russians, hopeful for the day that we're able to resume what I would call normal cooperation with the Russians," said the spokesman.


He cited the importance of Washington and Moscow working together on issues including the nuclear programs in North Korea and Iran, securing access to energy supplies, and managing soaring food costs.


"We are hopeful that this is a course that they have not chosen to go down permanently," said Johndroe.


Russian tanks poured into Georgia on August 8, initially to repel an attempt by Georgia's small, US-trained army to seize control of pro-Russia South Ossetia, which unilaterally declared its independence from Tbilisi after the fall of the Soviet Union.


Russian troops then expelled Georgian forces from their last foothold in Abkhazia, another separatist zone. They also took control of key towns, military bases, roads and the oil port of Poti.


For the first time since the crisis began, the White House, which has repeatedly branded Moscow's actions "disproportionate," described a Russian response that it would have considered reasonable.


Johndroe noted that Russia had peacekeepers in South Ossetia prior to the latest flare-up, and said the United States "can understand their desire to protect their peacekeepers" in the face of Georgia's offensive.


"What was, what is disproportionate is the systematic destruction of the Georgian military and Georgian military infrastructure as well as civilian infrastructure," as well as Russia's military deployment "into what is considered undisputed Georgian territory," he said.


"We told both sides repeatedly, the Georgians and the Russians, don't provoke each other. There is no reason for this conflict, which has been simmering for a long time, to flare up right now," said Johndroe.


He spoke after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Russia was not planning to "slam the door" on NATO, but that the alliance must choose partnership with Moscow over support for Georgia.


In Washington, US State Department spokesman Robert Wood rejected Lavrov's warning, saying: "We are not slamming the door on Russia and we don't believe ... we have to make a choice."

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



[font=Georgia]So where is it? This quote says the White House described a Russian response that it would have considered reasonable. Understanding Russia's desire to protect their peacekeepers?? That's the resonable response??

Then the White House side-steps and says what a disproportionate response was. Do they really think we are this stupid?

Russia did what any good country should do - stop the massacre and then punish the Aggressors!

By the U.S. and NATO saying Russia's response was disproportionate...makes them F*cking Hypocrites!!!! [/font]

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Russians begin full withdrawal from Georgia
August 22, 2008, 6:02
http://www.russiatoday.com/news/news/29347

Russian forces have begun a full-scale pullout from Georgian territory following last week’s conflict in South Ossetia. The withdrawal was due to begin at 6am Moscow time. Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said the pull-back would be completed on Friday.



The minister said troops would begin an organised withdrawal from Georgia's territory to South Ossetia.

"Only Russian peacekeeping units will remain at specially equipped security check-posts within the limits of security zones established in line with coordinated security principles, which Russia strictly abides by," said Serdyukov.

He added that the withdrawal complied with earlier orders given by President Dmitry Medvedev.

The Defence Minister has confirmed that Russian forces will complete their withdrawal from Georgia proper by Friday.

Following last week’s ceasefire agreement, troops attached to the peacekeeping contingent have been stationed inside Georgia proper to provide added security.

During hostilities, Georgian authorities fled towns in the conflict zone, abandoning civilians.

Russian troops have overseen deliveries of humanitarian aid and maintained order before handing the towns over to the control of Georgian police.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[font=Georgia]Ok, Russia engaged in military conflict, stopped mass killing of innocent people, provided aid and security for people caught in between, and now are going back home, all within 14 days! WoW!! That's impressive.[/font]

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33

Georgia invasion prompts Canada to pull out of military exercise with Russia
THE CANADIAN PRESS
http://www.thecanadianpress.com/english ... nguageid=1


CUPIDS, N.L. - Prime Minister Stephen Harper accused the Russian government of reverting to a Soviet-era mentality as he called on democratic countries to condemn the invasion of Georgia.

"We do call on Russia to respect the territorial integrity of Georgia," Harper said Thursday following a funding announcement in eastern Newfoundland.

"I am deeply troubled by a notion I see developing in Russia, and that is a notion that Russia somehow has a say or some control over countries outside of its borders."

Later Thursday in Fredericton, Defence Minister Peter MacKay gave force to Harper's concern by announcing Canada's withdrawal from a planned military exercise with Russia.

MacKay said Canada and the United States had planned to participate in a NORAD exercise with Russia to be called "Vigilant Eagle."

He said the United States also has pulled out of the operation.

"Clearly it would be inappropriate in the circumstances based on Russia's breach of territorial integrity in Georgia," MacKay told reporters.

"It's important to stand strong with our allies in sending a message that based on that type of aggressive behaviour, we will not participate in that exercise."

MacKay said he hopes Russia gets the message.

"It's a message that says, 'The world is noticing your actions,' " he said.

Harper said Canada was very troubled by the ongoing conflict and bloodshed in Georgia and he called on both sides to respect a recent ceasefire agreement.

"In my judgment, this is a very worrisome development. It really indicates a Soviet-era mentality. And I think it is something that all democratic countries should speak out strongly against and I hope Russia will reconsider its actions."

Explosions were heard Thursday near the town of Gori as a Russian troop withdrawal from the strategic city seemed to collapse and the ceasefire appeared even more shaky.

Meanwhile, Russia's foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, declared that the world "can forget about any talk about Georgia's territorial integrity."

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev held a meeting Thursday with the leaders of Georgia's two separatist provinces.

Gori is near South Ossetia, the separatist region where Russian and Georgian forces recently fought a brutal five-day battle.

Besides the hundreds killed since hostilities broke out last week, the United Nations estimates 100,000 Georgians have been uprooted.

_________________
Survival of freedom requires a moral people. Absent this, the Constitution has no meaning, no matter how well written. ~ Ron Paul
http://kitchener911truth.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/Steeper33