.bmp)
World Vision has begun providing emergency assistance to civilians displaced by the conflict in Georgia.The Christian humanitarian agency started distributing food, soap, blankets and other essentials to those, mainly women and children, who managed to flee to Georgia's capital, Tblisi.'''
MOSCOW-Russian forces have seized a "large arsenal" of U.S.-made weapons in the western Georgian city of Senaki including hundreds of assault rifles, a military spokesman said Friday."In Senaki, we seized a large arsenal of weapons including 664 U.S.-made M-16 rifles" and a number of M-40 sniper rifles, General Anatoly Nogovitsyn told a news conference in Moscow. "There were 1,728 weapons total." http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsStory.aspx?cpath=20080815%5cACQDJON200808150606DOWJONESDJONLINE000377.htm&&mypage=newsheadlines&title=Russia%20Seizes%20Arsenal%20Of%20US%20Weapons%20In%20Georgia%20-%20Military
The Bush administration appears to be trying to turn a failed military operation by Georgia into a successful diplomatic operation against Russia.It is doing so by presenting the Russian actions as aggression and playing down the Georgian attack into South Ossetia on 7 August, which triggered the Russian operation.Yet the evidence from South Ossetia about that attack indicates that it was extensive and damaging.
Ynet: "I tried to get into the car and run, but the soldier pushed me and then he fired a round which nearly hit my foot, it actually hit the tip of my sandal."
As in the days of Noah...
US army personnel unloads humanitarian help at the airport in Tbilisi
WASHINGTON-President Bush on Friday accused Russia of "bullying and intimidation " in its harsh military treatment of Georgia, saying the people in the former Soviet republic have chosen freedom and "we will not cast them aside."Bush ratcheted up his rhetoric against Moscow as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was in Tbilisi, Georgia to pursue a diplomatic solution to the week-old crisis. Standing alongside Rice, pro-Western President Mikhail Saakashvili said he had signed a cease-fire agreement with Russia that protects Georgia's interests despite concessions to Moscow.Rice said all Russian troops "must leave immediately" and said she had been told that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will sign an identical pact.The rush of events came as Bush began a two-week holiday from Washington. He left the White House after his remarks and flew to his ranch in Texas. Rice is to arrive there early Saturday to brief the president about the showdown between Moscow and Tbilisi over two separatist provinces in Georgia."Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected," said Bush, speaking just outside the Oval Office.With just five months remaining in his administration, Bush faces one of his biggest foreign policy challenges in dealing with a suddenly assertive Russia, along with unfinished wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the deeply troubled search for peace in the Middle East.Bush's influence is waning as the world turns its attention to the race to determine who will succeed him.Bush said that Russia, with its air, sea and land attacks in Georgia, had damaged its relations with the United States and other Western powers."Bullying and intimidation are not acceptable ways to conduct foreign policy in the 21st century," the president said. "Only Russia can decide whether it will now put itself back on the path of responsible nations or continue to pursue a policy that promises only confrontation and isolation."To begin repairing relations with the United States, Europe and other nations and to begin restoring its place in the world, Russia must respect the freedom of its neighbors," Bush said.The White House has hedged on what consequences Russia might face. The administration is considering expelling Russia from international groups such as the Group of Eight industrialized nations. Questions also have been raised about U.S. cooperation with Russia in space."We need to see where this all ends up," White House deputy press secretary Gordon Johndroe said on Air Force One, flying to Texas with Bush. "We are hopeful that we can continue cooperation with the Russians—and that's across the board. But a lot of this depends on Russia, and what Russia's actions are in the near future. Right now their actions have been inconsistent ... with the fundamental principles of a Europe whole, free and at peace. So cooperation on a wide range of issues going forward depends on the actions that Russia takes."Even before the crisis in Georgia, tensions between Washington and Moscow have been rising over disputes such as the independence of Kosovo,NATO's expansion toward Russia's borders and U.S. plans for a missile defense system in Eastern Europe.Moscow was infuriated when the United States and Poland reached a deal Thursday to install a U.S. missile defense base on Polish territory.Still, Bush said,"The Cold War is over. The days of satellite states and spheres of influence are behind us."The United States has rushed humanitarian aid to Georgia, using U.S. military planes that put American forces in the midst of the showdown with Moscow."Moscow must honor its commitment to withdraw its invading forces from all Georgian territory," Bush said.The president said Americans might be perplexed why the United States had drawn a line in the sand in defense of Georgia, an impoverished country that is largely unknown on the world stage."In the years since its gained independence after the Soviet Union's collapse, Georgia's become a courageous democracy," Bush said. "It's people are making the tough choices that are required of free societies. Since the Rose Revolution in 2003, the Georgian people have held free elections, opened up their economy, and built the foundations of a successful democracy."Aligning itself firmly with Washington, Georgia sent troops to Afghanistan and Iraq. Bush visited Georgia in a show of solidarity and promised that the United States would stand with the former Soviet republic."The people of Georgia have cast their lot with the free world, and we will not cast them aside," the president pledged on Friday.Bush on Friday called President Toomas Hendrik Ilves of Estonia to talk about the situation in Georgia.' http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D92IQNFG1&show_article=1
WASHINGTON-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Friday that Russian forces must leave Georgia immediately after Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili announced he has signed a cease-fire agreement.Rice said she had been assured that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will sign an identical document."With this signature by Georgia, this (withdrawal) must take place and take place now," Rice said at a press conference alongside Saakashvili, who said he will "never, ever surrender" in the showdown with Russia.“Georgia has been attacked. Russian forces need to leave Georgia at once," Rice said. "The world needs to help Georgia maintain its sovereignty, its territorial integrity and its independence.”Rice said Russia's invasion has "profound implications" for the West. Rice said the time has come "to begin a discussion of the consequences of what Russia has done."She also noted humanitarian aid already being provided by the United States and other nations and said that access for these supplies "must be immediate and unimpeded."Rice spoke just hours after President Bush stood outside the Oval Office of the White House and accused Russia of "bullying and intimidation" against Georgia. Bush said the Georgian people had chosen freedom and "we will not cast them aside."Meanwhile, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said the separatist Georgian regions at the center of the conflict appear destined for independence."After what happened, it's unlikely Ossetians and Abkhazians will ever be able to live together with Georgia in one state," he said in a joint news conference in the Russian resort of Sochi with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.Rice was in Tbilisi for talks with Saakashvili about details of the cease-fire, which would require Russia to withdraw its combat forces from Georgia but allow Russian peacekeepers to remain in South Ossetia and conduct limited patrols outside the region.Bush said he would get regular updates from Rice and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates about the continuing showdown between Moscow and Tbilisi over two separatist provinces in Georgia. He voiced firm support for Georgia on Friday."Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected," said Bush, speaking just outside the Oval Office before traveling to his Texas ranch for a two-week stay. "Moscow must honor its commitment to withdraw its invading forces from all Georgian territory...The people of Georgia have cast their lot with the free world, and we will not cast them aside."With just five months remaining in his administration, Bush faces one of his biggest foreign policy challenges in dealing with a suddenly assertive Russia, along with unfinished wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the deeply troubled search for peace in the Middle East. Bush's influence is waning as the world turns its attention to the race to determine who will succeed Bush.Bush said that Russia, with its air, sea and land attacks in Georgia, had damaged its relations with the United States and other Western powers."Bullying and intimidation are not acceptable ways to conduct foreign policy in the 21st century," the president said. "Only Russia can decide whether it will now put itself back on the path of responsible nations or continue to pursue a policy that promises only confrontation and isolation."To begin repairing relations with the United States, Europe and other nations and to begin restoring its place in the world, Russia must respect the freedom of its neighbors," Bush said.Even before the crisis in Georgia, tensions between Washington and Moscow have been rising over disputes such as the independence of Kosovo, NATO's expansion toward Russia's borders and U.S. plans for a missile defense system in Eastern Europe. In another development that infuriated Moscow, the United States and Poland reached a deal Thursday to install a U.S. missile defense base on Polish territory.Still, Bush said, "The Cold War is over. The days of satellite states and spheres of influence are behind us."The United States has rushed humanitarian aid to Georgia, using U.S. military planes that put American forces in the midst of the showdown with Moscow.The president said Americans might be perplexed why the United States had drawn a line in the sand in defense of Georgia, an impoverished country that is largely unknown on the world stage."In the years since its gained independence after the Soviet Union's collapse, Georgia's become a courageous democracy," Bush said. "It's people are making the tough choices that are required of free societies. Since the Rose Revolution in 2003, the Georgian people have held free elections, opened up their economy, and built the foundations of a successful democracy."Aligning itself firmly with Washington, Georgia sent troops to Afghanistan and Iraq. Bush visited Georgia in a show of solidarity and promised that the United States would stand with the former Soviet republic.Bush acknowledged that Russia is anxious about the spread of democracy to its borders and sees it as a threat to its security."The opposite is true," Bush said. "Free and prosperous societies on Russia's borders will advance Russia's interests by serving as sources of stability and economic opportunity."As in the days of Noah....
IGOETI, Georgia-A Russian military convoy advanced to within 55 km (34 miles) of Tbilisi on Friday, a Reuters witness said, in the deepest incursion since conflict with Georgia erupted last week.The advance by some 17 armored personnel carriers (APCs) and about 200 soldiers coincided with a visit by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to secure Georgia's signature on a French-brokered peace plan to end the fighting. Initially 10 APCs moved along the main highway from the Russian-occupied town of Gori, 25 km (15 miles) from breakaway South Ossetia, before stopping in the village of Igoeti. Several APCs headed down side roads and seven more arrived later.The exact mission of the incursion was not clear.At a news conference after President Mikheil Saakashvili signed the agreement, Rice called for the immediate withdrawal of Russian forces.The vehicles advanced unimpeded by Georgian police and army stationed along the road. A Reuters correspondent saw a military ambulance, snipers and rocket-propelled grenades.The convoy was initially shadowed by three low-flying Russian combat helicopters, which later left.Russian troops this week pushed out of South Ossetia as far as Gori in a counter-offensive to drive out Georgian forces who had tried to recapture the separatist South Ossetia region.Moscow declared a halt on Tuesday to military action but says it is securing Georgian military installations and abandoned arms dumps.On Thursday, Russian troops were spotted in Gori, the Black Sea port of Poti, and the western town of Zugdidi, which lies near another breakaway region, Abkhazia.Georgia has been calling for the Russian troops to pull back from Gori, alleging that irregular militias from over the border in the North Caucasus have moved in behind them and are looting and burning Georgian villages.
UNITED NATIONS-U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has so far been unable to contact Russian President Dmitry Medvedev by telephone to discuss the crisis in Georgia, a U.N. spokesman said on Friday.Ban has spoken to Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who called him on Thursday.Asked by reporters whether Ban had also been in touch with Medvedev, spokesman Farhan Haq said, "The secretary-general has been trying to contact the Russian president, so that's a call that we're still trying to arrange. We weren't able to set up a call."Ban is expected to meet Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, possibly on Saturday, Haq said.A simmering crisis over the rebel Georgian region of South Ossetia exploded a week ago, when Georgia sent a force to try to retake the Russian-backed province, provoking a massive counter-attack by Moscow.Ban said on Thursday he was alarmed by the humanitarian situation and lawlessness in the conflict areas in Georgia.
SARAJEVO-The narrow tunnel that ran beneath Sarajevo airport was people's only escape route during the longest siege in modern history, a symbol of a brutal war that split families and pitted neighbors against each other.After marking the 15th anniversary of the now largely destroyed tunnel's opening, some in the capital of Bosnia hope to reconstruct the passage which meant escape or at least brief relief from desperate times. Yet the sensitive project lacks funds and they say it may be an opportunity for foreign investors."It should be reconstructed to remember those times and show Bosnians and the world how we lived, how we survived," said Ismet Hadzic, a general during the war who ran one half of the tunnel. "If the city rebuilds it, it would become the premier tourist destination in the city."Like Vietnam's Cu Chi tunnels or the Anne Frank House Museum in Amsterdam, the tunnel that helped ordinary people survive in Sarajevo through more than 1,000 days under siege embodies the local spirit of resistance.But even as Bosnia slowly recovers from the 1992-95 war, its government is still divided by ethnic and religious tensions. For some, memories of Sarajevo's bloody past are still too raw and its economy too battered to contemplate such a venture.During the war, Bosnian Serb forces surrounded Sarajevo, a city that once boasted of tolerance between Muslims, Orthodox Serbs, Catholic Croats and Jews.About 14,000 people were killed during the siege, according to Norwegian government-backed research by the Sarajevo-based Investigation-Documentation Centre.Sarajevo's population of about 350,000, of which about 90 percent are now secular Muslims but still includes Serbs and Croats, has made significant progress in rebuilding since then. Yet nearly 40 percent of Bosnians are still officially unemployed.
ORANGE PARK, FL-After Robert Powell hit the Florida Lottery jackpot last month and took home more than $6 million, he thought of his church.And he offered to drop his tithe, around $600,000, in the collection plate of First Baptist Orange Park.But the church and Pastor David Tarkington politely declined and told Powell they will not accept the lottery winnings.Many churches do not approve of the lottery and gambling but on the other hand Pastor Dr. Lorenzo Hall of the El-Beth-El Divine Holiness Church says $600,000 can do a lot of good."I'm against the lottery, but if one of my members won the lottery, I wish and I hope he would give 10% to the church, we could do a lot of things with that money," says Hall.As a Holiness minister, Dr. Hall says he does not ask where members get the money they decide to donate.He said he would welcome Powell's donation to his inner city church anytime."We are in the process now of building a youth center, and you would be surprised at the people that can be helped with $600,000," says Hall.Bethel Baptist Church member Lottie Walker says if she won, the first thing she would do is give lottery money to her church."Anything extra is bonus so that would be an extra blessing of offering after that, so if I did win lotto, sweepstakes I would tithe to my church," says Walker.First Baptist Orange Park Pastor David Tarkington would not say exactly why the church refused the money, saying only he didn't want to talk about members' gifts.
WASHINGTON-The United States and Poland reached a long-stalled deal on Thursday to place an American missile defense base on Polish territory, in the strongest reaction so far to Russia's military operation in Georgia.Russia reacted angrily, saying that the move would worsen relations with the United States that have already been strained severely in the week since Russian troops entered separatist enclaves in Georgia, a close American ally.But the deal reflected growing alarm in countries like Poland, once a conquered Soviet client state, about a newly rich and powerful Russia's intentions in its former cold war sphere of power. In fact, negotiations dragged on for 18 months — but were completed only as old memories and new fears surfaced in recent days.Those fears were codified to some degree in what Polish and American officials characterized as unusual aspects of the final deal: that at least temporarily American soldiers would staff air defense sites in Poland oriented toward Russia, and that the United States would be obliged to defend Poland in case of an attack with greater speed than required under NATO, of which Poland is a member.Polish officials said the agreement would strengthen the mutual commitment of the United States to defend Poland, and vice versa. "Poland and the Poles do not want to be in alliances in which assistance comes at some point later — it is no good when assistance comes to dead people," the Polish prime minister, Donald Tusk, said on Polish television. "Poland wants to be in alliances where assistance comes in the very first hours of — knock on wood — any possible conflict."...
FBI terrorism experts are investigating whether the death of a Somali-born Canadian citizen-whose body was found Monday in a Denver hotel room with about a pound of extremely toxic sodium cyanide-is connected to the upcoming Democratic National Convention.An FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force has been sent to Denver, although Special Agent Kathy Wright said there's no information to conclude that Saleman Abdirahman Dirie had terrorist ties, the Rocky Mountain News reported. While local law enforcement officials tried to downplay the incident, stressing that there was no sign of foul play in the death of Dirie, a Defense Department contractor said it's likely a terror plot could have been in the works, considering the toxicity and reported amount of cyanide found with the 29-year-old from Ottawa."I don't see how anybody could do anything but look into the possibility that this is a potential terrorist attack," Dr. Andrew Ternay told CBS 4 News in Denver.The FBI, however, said Wednesday that there's probably no reason for them to go back to the fourth-floor room at the Burnsley Hotel, where Dirie was found.The hotel is located about four blocks from the Denver state Capitol."It's an isolated incident," Denver Police Detective John White told the newspaper. They refused to speculate on why he had such a large quantity of the poisonous substance with him in the swanky all-suite hotel so soon before the convention in Denver, Aug. 25-28."We don't think it's any act of terrorism," Sonny Jackson, a spokesman for the Denver Police Department, told FOXNews.com. "We have no reason to believe it was. Nobody knows what was in this gentleman's mind."Jackson declined to elaborate on why the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force got involved in the case."That's just normal," said Jackson. "You'd have to ask them why they got involved. They may have more expertise with the chemicals."Sodium cyanide is commercially available and commonly found in rat poison and used to extract fold and other precious metals. When inhaled or ingested, the chemical prevents the body from processing oxygen. It can also be mixed with certain acids to produce extremely lethal cyanide gas, according to the Department of Justice.In July, a person calling himself "Abdirahman Dirie" posted an online comment with a blog that discussed the killing of Christians by Islamic Courts and Islamists in Somalia. It was not known whether it was the same person as the Dirie found dead in Denver."Please on't [sic] talk sh—t, that man [the Christian blogger] deserves what happened to him, simply because having the bible in one hand, and a bread in the other hand, is not a correct thing,! Kill Them, Kill them, Kill them, that is my massage [sic],!"-comment by Abdirahman Dirie, July 11, 2008 @10:33 p.m.But the FBI echoed police, insisting terrorism isn't suspected."At this point we don't have any nexus to terrorism," the FBI's Wright told The Associated Press. She didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment from FOXNews.com.Dirie's sister, meanwhile, is upset over the implication that her brother might have been planning some sort of massive deadly attack."He was not a terrorist," his sister, who declined to give her name, told the Montreal Gazette. "We don't want to hear that word, it hurts us. It is against our religion."She told the Gazette that he was diagnosed with schizophrenia about three years ago and was taking medication.She said her brother was "fine" and wasn't suicidal. Police said they were investigating whether Dirie took his own life."That's a possibility," Jackson told FOXNews.com. "I'm not going to speculate. It's just a death investigation at this point."The medical examiner conducted tests and was awaiting results to determine how Dirie, whose body was found Monday, died; authorities were looking at whether it could have been from exposure to the cyanide. He had been dead for several days.Fire officials said they found a bottle of the white powder in Dirie's room, about a quart by volume, that was confirmed by police Wednesday to be cyanide.Jackson declined to confirm how much was found."We aren't releasing any amount," he told FOXNews.com. "We don't even know how much. It's basically readily available for commercial use."Investigators have not said why Dirie had cyanide or whether he worked in a job that would have involved using it. They also have not said how long Dirie had been in Denver or whether anyone had accompanied him, though he didn't appear to have ties to the city.The State Department said privacy laws prevented the release of any information about the type of visa Dirie may have had.The Canadian Consulate in Denver said members of Dirie's family were in Colorado to make arrangements to return his body to Canada.Addirizuk Karod, manager of Ottawa's Somali Centre for Family Services, told the Ottawa Sun that Dirie was a member of the city's Somali community and had been to the center with friends.Karod told the newspaper the Dirie family had left Somalia as refugees years ago and had become Canadian citizens.Hotel general manager Jason Ford declined to offer specific information about Dirie. He said other guests have been moved from the fourth floor, where Dirie's room was, to avoid inconvenience from the investigation.An advocacy group for Somali immigrants cautioned against linking Dirie to terrorism.The Somali Justice Advocacy Center in St. Paul, Minn., said Thursday that connecting Dirie's death to terrorism "is a rush to judgment." To watch video go to:
WARSAW, Poland-Poland and the United States reached an agreement Thursday that will see a battery of American missiles established inside Poland, the prime minister said, announcing a plan that has infuriated Russia and raised the specter of an escalation of tension with the region's communist-era master.The deal, which Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said was to be signed later Thursday in Warsaw by Poland and the United States, includes what he called a "mutual commitment" between the two nations—beyond that of NATO—to come to each other's assistance in case of danger.That was an obvious reference to the force and ferocity with which Russia rolled into Georgia in recent days, taking the key city of Gori and apparently burning and destroying Georgian military outposts and airfields.Tusk said that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization would be too slow in coming to Poland's defense if Poland were threatened and that the bloc would take "days, weeks to start that machinery.""Poland and the Poles do not want to be in alliances in which assistance comes at some point later—it is no good when assistance comes to dead people. Poland wants to be in alliances where assistance comes in the very first hours of—knock on wood—any possible conflict," Tusk said."This is a step toward real security for Poland in the future," he added.A U.S. official in Washington said "it looks as if we're near agreement, and we hope to make a joint announcement today." The official spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a formal announcement.Tusk, speaking in a televised interview from the capital, said the United States agreed to Polish proposals that it help augment its defenses in exchange for placing 10 missile defense interceptors.Tusk said that the U.S. met the key Polish demands "concerning the permanent presence of Patriots, missiles that will be able to effectively protect our territory." "The Americans have accepted these postulates," he said on TVN24, an all-news channel.The deal was reached after more than 18 months of back-and-forth, often terse, negotiations.
--Russian militia accused of orgies of looting and rape
PS:It is interesting that Fox News cut them off right in the middle of this girl's account of the events,even though they had just come from a commercial break 2 minutes prior to that...
As in the days of Noah...
TBILISI, Georgia-Georgia's president says a column of more than 100 Russian tanks and other vehicles is moving toward the country's second-largest city.Mikhail Saakashvili says the convoy is about halfway between the cities of Senaki and Kutaisi.He spoke to foreign reporters Thursday and appealed for international help. Russian and Georgian forces have been fighting since Georgia sought to regain control of a breakaway province last week. http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D92I8PSG0&show_article=1
WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Robert Gates warned Thursday that if Russia doesn't pull back from its fighting in Georgia it could hurt Moscow-Washington relations "for years to come."Speaking at his first Pentagon news conference since the fighting started, Gates also said he does not see "any prospect" for the use of U.S. military force there."The United States spent 45 years working very hard to avoid a military confrontation with Russia," said Gates. "I see no reason to change that approach today."But Gates said Russia must face retribution for a military assault on Georgia that appears aimed at punishing the small nation for "daring to try to integrate with the West economically, and politically, and in security arrangements."Saying Russia has serious work to do to restore its place in the international community, he said Moscow's actions have given other European nations a greater incentive to stand with the West."I think what happens in the days and months to come will determine the future course of U.S.-Russian relations," said Gates. "My personal view is that there need to be some consequences for ... the actions that Russia has taken against a sovereign state."At his side, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. James Cartwright said the military assesses that Russia is "generally complying" with the truce that called for its withdrawal from the hostilities.He said Russian forces appeared to be forming up in Georgia in preparation for withdrawal.Gates noted that the Bush administration last year started talks with Russia that officials hoped would be a long-term strategic dialogue. But Russia's invasion of Georgia has called that into question, he said.Gates, a former director of the CIA and regarded as an expert on the former Soviet Union as well as Russian policies, said he believes Russian leaders are trying to redress what they regard as the many concessions forced on them amid the breakup of the former Soviet Union and that they want to "reassert their international status." Acknowledging that some reports coming out of Georgia have simply not been true, Gates said it appears the Georgian port is intact and usable, and that the Russians did not block the waterway.He said it is unlikely that the U.S. would send peacekeepers to the region, but suggested the Pentagon could provide support, such as transportation for other nations — probably European — that were doing so.Gates and Cartwright stressed that the small military assessment team now in Georgia is not looking for any military interaction with the Russians, but will move out into the country as necessary to determine what assistance the Georgians need. The U.S., Cartwright said, will continue to let the Russians know where the American team is and what it is doing.Asked about any additional U.S. military actions against Russia, Gates said the Pentagon plans to "re-examine the entire gamut of our military-to-military activities with Russia and will make changes as necessary and appropriate, depending on Russian actions in the days ahead."He also suggested that some of the lag in U.S. intelligence and actions during the early days of the conflict were the result, in part, of inaccurate information given to U.S. cabinet members by Russian leaders in phone conversations.Asked if he trusted Putin, Gates smiled."I have never believed that one should make national security policy on the basis of trust," said Gates, who has jousted with Putin routinely over the years. "I think you make national security policy based on interests and on realities." http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080814/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/gates
“My name’s Shrek,” said the soldier, his eyes glazed and staring as he cradled his Kalashnikov rifle.The nickname given by his comrades to the bald, pug-eared soldier was the only moment of light relief during a day of tense drama in which The Times witnessed Russia breaching the ceasefire agreement over South Ossetia at will.At a checkpoint set up by the Russian Army on the approach to the city of Gori from the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, an armoured personnel carrier blocked the road and riflemen had fanned out in the surrounding bushes, their weapons trained on anyone who approached.All were ethnic Chechens, whose reputation for pitiless brutality in war made them feared throughout the Caucasus.The checkpoint was the first evidence that the deal brokered hours earlier by President Sarkozy of France was being ignored. Shortly after President Saakashvili had signed the agreement, Russian tanks and troops rolled into Gori.The ceasefire had specified that both the Georgian and Russian armies should withdraw after the five days of bitter fighting. But the Russians had moved up to twenty tanks, armoured personnel carriers and hundreds of soldiers miles into Georgia to occupy Gori and take control of the road leading to Tbilisi.One soldier, Yuri, said that his unit, part of the 42nd Chechen Division, had fought for the whole five-day campaign to wrest South Ossetia from Georgian control. Asked why they had taken Gori now, he said: “We were given an order and we are following it. We don’t know how long we will be here.”Smoke rose behind him as buildings burnt in the villages surrounding Gori. There were also prolonged bursts of automatic gunfire, although Georgian troops had abandoned the city in a panic on Monday night.A stream of Georgians fled the area in cars, tractors and lorries, taking what belongings they could. A black Volga car crammed with passengers carried two more escapers on its roof.One elderly couple were walking, the woman clearly in shock, her face swollen and one eye badly damaged. She pointed backwards and said: “They are killing people there, the Chechens and the Ossetians.” Irregular soldiers from South Ossetia were being accused yesterday of killing and looting, acts of revenge for the Georgian incursion on Friday that the Russians say cost 2,000 lives. The irregulars, mostly young, twitchy and armed by the Russians, were identified by white bandage strips tied around their sleeves. Some wore black balaclavas.Then, suddenly, a convoy of about seventy Russian military vehicles – some carrying antiaircraft guns and all loaded with soldiers and irregulars – began to pour out of Gori and head towards the capital.Russian flags flew from several of the vehicles. Some irregulars shouted that they were on their way to Tbilisi.The convoy continued south for almost ten miles, unchallenged by the Georgian forces, which had withdrawn from Gori to Tbilisi. Just as it seemed that they might really be intent on reaching the capital, the vehicles turned left towards the village of Orjosani.Irregulars jumped out to form a security cordon. Asked what their mission was, they said only that they had been ordered to advance to the village and await instructions.Tengiz, a 23-year-old South Ossetian, brandished his gun and said: “If I had the chance I would go all the way to Tbilisi now, but there is a peace agreement so they don’t let us.” Several army trucks had become detached from the main convoy and arrived after it had turned into the wooded lane leading to Orjosani. Oblivious, they ploughed on towards Tbilisi, now only a little over 30 miles away, before realising their error and making a sharp U-turn.Six or seven miles up the road, and no more than twenty-five miles from Tbilisi, Georgian soldiers were scrambling to establish artillery positions. They had been caught out by the unexpected Russian movement and they had been scrambled from the capital to set up a defensive line.“We have instructions not to allow the Russians to come any closer to Tbilisi,” one soldier said. “If they come here, we will shoot.”Another soldier, kitted out in American fatigues, said: “If we don’t wait for them here, they will come straight to Tbilisi. We have no other choice. We are ready to fight.” The ceasefire – less than a day old – was already hanging by a thread, and Russian troops had advanced farther into Georgian territory than at any point during the war. Already victorious militarily, the Russian Army appeared determined to humiliate Georgia by demonstrating that it alone would decide where to go and when. Yesterday’s events also raised deeper questions about the value of the Russian President’s word. Dmitri Medvedev signed the ceasefire agreement but was clearly failing to enforce it.
President Bush dispatched US military hardware to the heart of the Caucasus yesterday and warned Russia that it could be frozen out of international bodies as punishment for its aggression in Georgia.In his toughest criticism of Russia since becoming President, Mr Bush accused it of breaching the provisional ceasefire agreed with Georgia only 24 hours earlier.He cited intelligence showing that Russian troops had again taken the town of Gori and could threaten the capital, Tbilisi. He insisted that Moscow respect the former Soviet republic’s territorial integrity. There were also reports of Russian-backed militia in South Ossetia looting ethnic Georgian villages and killing inhabitants.“To begin to repair the damage to its relations with the United States, Europe and other nations, and to begin restoring its place in the world, Russia must keep its word and act to end this crisis,” Mr Bush said.The US is in talks with allies about whether to suspend Russia’s membership of the G8 club of industrialised nations. There is a growing clamour to block Russia’s membership of the World Trade Organisation and to rescind an invitation for it to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.Mr Bush’s statement, delivered in stern tones outside the White House, was stronger than his cautious comments last week, which reflected the State Department’s unhappiness with Georgia’s use of force against pro-Russian separatist rebels in South Ossetia.Although direct military intervention is not being considered, Pentagon sources have hinted that a limited number of troops could be deployed to support what Mr Bush described as a vigorous and continuing humanitarian mission headed by the US military.The first US air force transport aircraft arrived last night, and the navy was heading to the Black Sea – which is controlled by Russian warships – to deliver humanitarian and medical supplies direct to Georgian ports. “We expect Russia to honour its commitment to let in all forms of humanitarian assistance,” Mr Bush said.President Saakashvili of Georgia seized on the announcement to say that Tbilisi airport and Poti port would be placed under US military control, a claim the Pentagon swiftly denied.Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State, flew to France last night to meet President Sarkozy before heading to Tbilisi. Sergei Lavrov, her Russian counterpart, said that the US must choose between supporting the Georgian leadership and maintaining a partnership with Russia on international issues. Dr Rice said: “This is not 1968 and the invasion of Czechoslovakia, where Russia can threaten its neighbours, occupy a capital, overthrow a government and get away with it. Things have changed.”The Georgian President had accused the US of squandering its support among former Soviet republics. Diplomats say that they have little leverage against a Kremlin in which the strings are still being pulled by Vladimir Putin, the former President. The most likely sanctions are those that would damage Russia’s prestige.Mr Bush said: “Russia has sought to integrate into the diplomatic, political, economic and security structures of the 21st century. Now Russia is putting its aspirations at risk by taking actions in Georgia that are inconsistent with the principles of those institutions.”David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, said that the EU should reassess plans for a partnership agreement with Russia. For the time being, measures being taken have been limited to a US boycott of a Nato meeting with a Russian delegation and the likely cancellation of a joint naval exercise.
MOSCOW-President Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia said Thursday that Russia would act as an international guarantor of the two pro-Russian enclaves at the center of the crisis with Georgia, and Foreign Minister Sergey V. Lavrov said that Georgia could “forget about” territorial integrity because of the war.The comments did not stake out a new position, but together, they offered a sharp retort to President Bush’s insistence a day earlier that “the sovereign and territorial integrity of Georgia be respected.”The Russian rebuke came as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice headed to the region to work for a settlement and to show support for the Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili.Meanwhile, in Georgia, Russian forces briefly allowed the Georgian police to return to the city of Gori on Thursday morning as the Russian troops appeared to prepare to pull out. But joint patrols were canceled three hours later and the city returned to full Russian control.In a further sign that Russian forces remained in control of key parts of Georgian territory, Russian tanks patrolled the city of Poti, a Black Sea port farther west.Mr. Medvedev said he would support the independence aspirations of South Ossetians and Abkhazians if they were in accordance with the United Nations Charter, international conventions of 1966 and the Helsinki Act on Security and Cooperation in European.“You have been defending your land, and the right is on your side,” Mr. Medvedev said at a meeting with leaders of the two breakaway regions.“Russia’s position is unchanged: we will support any decisions taken by the peoples of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in accordance with the U.N. Charter,” he said, adding that “not only do we support but we will guarantee them.”As Ms. Rice traveled to the region, she arrived in France to meet the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, who brokered the cease-fire between Russia and Georgia, in the president’s summer residence in southern France.Ms. Rice was due later to travel to Tbilisi, the Georgian capital.On Wednesday, the United States and Georgia called the Russian advances into Gori and another strategic Georgian city a violation of the cease-fire agreement struck only hours earlier.In response, Mr. Bush sent American troops to Georgia to oversee a “vigorous and ongoing” humanitarian mission, in a direct challenge to Russia’s display of military dominance over the region. Mr. Bush demanded that Russia abide by the cease-fire and withdraw its forces or risk its place in “the diplomatic, political, economic and security structures of the 21st century.” It was his strongest warning yet of potential retaliation against Russia over the conflict.In Gori, which was the focus of international protest after Russia shelled it and occupied it on Wednesday, the attempt at joint patrols on Thursday suggested a cooling of tensions there.Gori is just 40 miles from Tbilisi, and rumors had circulated on Wednesday of a possible advance on the city. It was not clear why the joint patrols failed, but it appeared that personnel on the ground were in conflict. Around 10 a.m. Thursday, a Russian Army major ordered Georgian and Russian police officers to patrol in pairs. But this clearly did not last. “We had to go or there would have been shooting,” said a Georgian officer, who would not give his name.More than 30 Georgian police officers left Gori and returned to a post outside the city; shortly afterward Russian troops fired three artillery rounds. Their target was not clear.In Poti, three Russian tanks were seen patrolling the city. Villagers there said the Russian tanks frequently made the 30-minute drive from their base just northeast in Senaki to Poti to perform exercises on an abandoned military base, with troops jumping off their tanks and sweeping the area around them.A Georgian state television reporter was shot, but not seriously hurt, on Thursday afternoon while broadcasting live from the side of the road between Tbilisi and Gori. The reporter, Tamara Urushadze, wearing a flak jacket marked “TV,” was speaking when muffled pops could be heard. She looked over her shoulder, then stepped sideways and fell in front of the camera. A bullet grazed her left wrist, and Ms. Urushadze continued broadcasting live as she held her bleeding arm.In an interview on a liberal radio station, Ekho Moskvy, Mr. Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said that Georgia’s territorial integrity was “de facto limited” and that any agreement suggesting otherwise would be “deeply insulting” to the people of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.He also said he was not worried about the threat of international isolation, the Interfax news agency reported.“I don’t know how they are going to isolate us,” he said.
GORI, Georgia-Explosions were heard near Gori on Thursday as a Russian troop withdrawal from the strategic city seemed to collapse. A fragile cease-fire appeared even more shaky as Russia's foreign minister declared that the world "can forget about any talk about Georgia's territorial integrity."The declaration from the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, came simultaneously with the announcement that President Medvedev of Russia was meeting in the Kremlin with the leaders of Georgia's two separatist provinces. "One can forget about any talk about Georgia's territorial integrity because, I believe, it is impossible to persuade South Ossetia and Abkhazia to agree with the logic that they can be forced back into the Georgian state," Mr. Lavrov told reporters.At least five explosions were heard near Gori. It could not immediately be determined if the blasts were a renewal of fighting between Georgian and Russian forces, but they sounded similar to mortar shells and occurred after a tense confrontation between Russian and Georgian troops on the edge of the city.The strategically located city is 15 miles south of South Ossetia, the separatist region where Russian and Georgian forces fought a brutal five-day battle. Russian troops entered Gori yesterday, after the two sides signed the cease-fire that called for their forces to pull back to the positions they held before the fighting started.Georgia early today said the Russians were leaving the city, but later alleged they were bringing in additional troops. Georgian government officials who had gone into the city for a possible handover left unexpectedly around midday, followed by a confrontation at a Russian checkpoint on Gori's outskirts that ended when Russian tanks sped toward the area and Georgian police forces retreated.Some Georgian police said irregular fighters from South Ossetia had refused to leave Gori, where a BBC reporter saw them looting and burning last night.The first of two planned American aid flights arrived in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi late yesterday, carrying cots, blankets, and medicine for refugees displaced by the fighting. The shipment arrived on a C-17 military plane, an illustration of the close America-Georgia military cooperation that has angered Russia.Besides the hundreds killed since hostilities broke out, the United Nations estimates 100,000 Georgians have been uprooted; Russia says some 30,000 residents of South Ossetia fled into the neighboring Russian province of North Ossetia.Gori was battered by sporadic Russian bombing before the cease-fire, with Russia saying it was targeting a military base near the city. The city, on Georgia's only significant east-west road, is only 60 miles west of Tbilisi. The Russian troops' presence in Gori was viewed as a demonstration of the vulnerability of the capital.Russian troops also appeared to be settling in elsewhere in Georgia.An APTN camera crew saw Russian soldiers and military vehicles parked today inside the Georgian government's elegant, heavily-gated residence in the western town of Zugdidi. Some of the soldiers wore blue peacekeeping helmets, others wore green camouflage helmets, all were heavily armed.The scene underlined how closely the soldiers Russia calls peacekeepers are allied with its military."The Russian troops are here. They are occupying," an elderly Zugdidi resident, Ygor Gegenava, told the APTN crew. "We don't want them here. What we need is friendship and good relations with the Russian people."Georgia, bordering the Black Sea between Turkey and Russia, was ruled by Moscow for most of the two centuries preceding the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union.Secretary of State Rice was flying today to France and then to Tbilisi to reinforce American efforts to "rally the world in defense of a free Georgia.""This is not 1968 and the invasion of Czechoslovakia where Russia can threaten a neighbor, occupy a capital, overthrow a government and get away with it. Things have changed," Mr. Rice said in Washington yesterday.The Russian General Prosecutor's office today said it has formally opened a genocide probe into Georgian treatment of South Ossetians. For its part, Georgia this week filed a suit against Russia in the International Court of Justice, alleging murder, rape, and mass expulsions in both provinces.More homes in deserted ethnic Georgian villages were apparently set ablaze yesterday, sending clouds of smoke over the foothills north of Tskhinvali, capital of breakaway South Ossetia.One Russian colonel, who refused to give his name, blamed the fires on looters.Those with ethnic Georgian backgrounds who have stayed behind-like a 70-year-old retired teacher, Vinera Chebataryeva-seem increasingly unwelcome in South Ossetia.As she stood sobbing in her wrecked apartment near the center of Tskhinvali, Ms. Chebataryeva said a skirmish between Ossetian soldiers and a Georgian tank had gouged the two gaping shell holes in her wall, bashing in her piano and destroying her furniture.An ethnic Ossetian neighbor, Janna Kuzayeva, claimed the Georgian tank fired the shell at Ms. Chebataryeva's apartment."We know for sure her brother spied for Georgians," Ms. Kuzayeva said. "We let her stay here, and now she's blaming everything on us."Pointing to her broken door, Ms. Chebataryeva said Ossetian soldiers broke into her apartment and started firing at the Georgian tank from her windows. North of Tskhinvali, a number of former Georgian communities have been abandoned due to the intense fighting of the last few days. "There isn't a single Georgian left in those villages," a 45-year-old South Ossetian, Robert Kochi, said.But he had little sympathy for his former Georgian neighbors, whom he accused of trying to drive out Ossetians. "They wanted to physically uproot us all," he said. "What other definition is there for genocide?"
BP resumed exports of Azerbaijani natural gas exports through a pipeline across Georgia to Turkey on Thursday. However its oil pipeline to the Georgian Black Sea port of Supsa remained out of action because of fears of fallout from Georgia’s conflict with Russia.Both pipelines were closed by the British energy group on Tuesday amid concerns about security emanating from the conflict between Georgia and Russia over the breakaway Georgian republic of South Ossetia.”BP began filling the South Caucasus pipeline again today because we believe it is now safe enough to do so,” said Toby Odone,a BP spokesman. Supply disruptions to Georgia and Turkey had been minimal because of gas stored in the line, he said. However, the BP-operated 150,000 barrels a day oil pipeline from Baku to Supsa is still closed because of doubts about safety at Georgia’s Black Sea ports.Oil exports from Azerbaijan were drastically reduced last week after an explosion on the Turkish section of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline to the Turkish Mediterranean, the main artery for Azerbaijan’s oil exports. Kurdish separatists claimed responsibility for the accident on the pipeline which was carrying about 850,000 barrels a day of oil to western markets at the time.Repair work on BTC is expected to take several weeks.Russia invited Azerbaijan on Wednesday to increase its oil exports through a pipeline from Baku to Novorrosiysk on the Russian Black Sea. Exports of Azerbaijani oil through the pipeline to Russia have slowed to a trickle since the Baku-Tbilisi-Cehyan pipeline began working in 2005.Pipelines across the Caucasus have provided Caspian oil and gas producers with a first, non-Russian pipeline route to export markets. Russia is also pressing Azerbaijan to export gas through Russian pipelines, diverting supplies away from the route across the Caucasus.
US military planes delivered aid to Georgia on Thursday after George W. Bush ordered a “vigorous” humanitarian mission and dispatched Condolezza Rice to Tbilisi to convey America’s “unwavering support” for the democratically elected government.The US president also said he expected Russia to ensure that “all lines of communication and transport” were open to humanitarian supplies, and to withdraw “all Russian forces that entered Georgia in recent days”.The deputy chief of Russia’s armed forces, Anatoly Nogovitsyn, called on the US to disclose what was inside the cargoes Washington is shipping as humanitarian aid. ”Lets ask the Amercian side so that you are convinced of whether the cargo is humanitarian or not,” he said. ”Why don’t they lift the curtain for us about what is being supplied? Russia is very concerned about this.”Meanwhile, Russian troops and armour moved in or around at least three Georgian towns on Thursday, ignoring demands by Washington that Moscow respect Georgia’s territorial integrity. Reuters witnesses saw Russian troops in the key central Georgian town of Gori and outside the western town of Zugdidi. Residents in the Black Sea port of Poti saw a Russian incursion.Col-general Nogovitsyn told a news conference it was legitimate for Russian peacekeepers to be in the Georgian port town of Poti for intelligence operations.He also said Russia’s Black Sea fleet would take commands only from the Russian President after Ukraine’s president Viktor Yushchenko signed a decree requiring authorisation for Russian warships to return to their base in Sevastopol, a Crimean port which is part of Ukraine.While White House officials insisted the aid mission was purely humanitarian, the arrival of US forces marked an intensification of Washington’s response to the crisis after criticism of its relatively low-key role in previous days.Mr Bush expected Russia to ensure that “all lines of communication and transport” were open to humanitarian supplies, and to withdraw “all Russian forces that entered Georgia in recent days”.On Wednesday, Georgia accused Russia of breaking the terms of Tuesday’s ceasefire, when Russian forces destroyed an abandoned military base in Gori, near the pro-Russian enclave of South Ossetia where the conflict erupted.At an emergency meeting in Brussels on Wednesday, European Union foreign ministers endorsed Tuesday’s peace deal and expressed broad support for sending peacekeepers to South Ossetia, subject to United Nations approval.Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, said Moscow would not object to the addition of international peacekeepers to South Ossetia but insisted Russian forces would remain in the enclave.The UK on Wednesday pulled its Royal Navy out of a planned Nato military exercise involving Russia, saying it would be “highly inappropriate” to continue in the “current circumstances”.Mr Bush also issued a veiled threat to expel Russia from the Group of Eight industrialised nations and block its accession to the World Trade Organisation, warning that its actions in Georgia were “inconsistent with the principles” of such institutions.“Russia's ongoing action raises serious questions about its intentions in Georgia and the region,” he said. “To begin restoring its place in the world, Russia must keep its word and act to end this crisis.”Mr Lavrov said the US must choose between supporting its “special project” in Georgia and forging a “real partnership” with Moscow.Mr Saakashvili criticised western countries for not reacting strongly enough to Russian aggression, warning that Moscow was “fighting a proxy war with the west through us”.
.bmp)
