Could The U.S. Get Pulled Into Georgia’s War?
According to the Times Online; US aircraft have started to fly some of Georgia’s 2,000 troops in Iraq back home to join the fight in the breakaway province of South Ossetia, General David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq said today.
“The flights are ongoing to redeploy the elements of the Georgian contingent so that they can deal with the security issues in their country,” General Petraeus told The Times in an interview at his office inside Baghdad’s Green Zone.
While in China, Bush made the following statement:
“If [Georgian officials] request it, we will facilitate [the transfer] within a relatively short amount of time” with commercial or U.S. military aircraft, the official said. “We have communicated with the Russians what our obligations are” to Georgia.
To compound the problem, the U.S. currently has 130 troops/personnel in Georgia who train for Iraq and for Georgian defense. Unlike the U.N. troops, Bush has not ordered U.S. troops to leave the region.
No, Bush stayed in China to watch the Olympics while Putin went to North Ossetia to monitor the Russia troops and South Ossetia refugees.
Some History behind the conflict:
Since 1991, when Georgia gained its independence from the USSR, South Ossetia has been determined to break away. Russia has been a strong supporter of South Ossetians which the Georgians view as meddling in their country.
Ossetians have had good relations with Russians and were regarded as loyal citizens, first by the Russian empire and later by the Soviet Union. They sided with the Kremlin when Bolshevik forces occupied Georgia in the early 1920s. Georgia was then carve-up, the South Ossetian Autonomous Region was created in Georgia and North Ossetia was formed in Russia.
In 1992, Russia played a key role in the negotiations of a cease fire between South Ossetia and Georgia. Russia retained peacekeeping troops in South Ossetia. While Russia continued to recognize Georgia’s territorial sovereignty over South Ossetia it also helped the Ossetians to resist full Georgian control. Today, most residents of South Ossetia hold Russian passports.
Georgia was once at the heart of the USSR; it was the birthplace of Joseph Stalin and his KGB chief Lavrenti Beria. However, in 2003, after the U.S. backed “Rose Revolution,” which toppled the corrupt government of former Soviet foreign minister Eduard Shevardnadze, Georgia became Russia’s least favorite neighbor.
The following year, Mikheil Saakashvili, a Harvard-educated lawyer, was elected president at the age of just 37 after promising to move the country deeply into the Western camp and to restore Georgian control over the breakaway regions.
Georgia and the U.S.
The Bush administration has supported Georgia’s entrance into NATO. In contrast to Russia who since 2007 have repeatedly stated that Kosovo’s declaration of independence and recognition by the U.S. and the major Western powers would lead to recognition of pro-Russian secessionist regimes, including Transnistria in Moldova, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia. The second reason is Russia’s adamant opposition to the U.S.-supported bid by Georgia to become a NATO member.
Iraq and Afghanistan
Mr Saakashvili sent troops to fight alongside the Americans in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Georgia became one of the few countries in the world where George W.Bush is something of a hero — the road to the airport in Georgia’s capital city, Tbilisi, is named after Mr Bush and is even marked by a large portrait of the US President.
- U.S.-Georgia relations continue to be close. Georgian leaders note that U.S. humanitarian assistance was critical to Georgia’s recovery from civil war and economic difficulties following independence. Extensive U.S. assistance is currently targeted to support Georgia’s economic and political reform programs, with an emphasis on institution building. The U.S. also is working with the Georgian Parliament on draft laws and establishing procedures and standards consistent with the country’s 1995 Constitution. The United States provided Georgia approximately $1.2 billion in assistance through 2001, averaging about $100 million annually.
- The United States also provides Georgia with bilateral security assistance, including through the International Military Education and Training (IMET) program. Evolving U.S.-Georgia partnerships include the Georgia Train and Equip Program, intended to enhance Georgia’s military capability and stimulate military reform, programs by the Georgia (U.S.) National Guard, visits by the Sixth Fleet and the Coast Guard to Georgia, and the Bilateral Working Group on Defense and Military Cooperation. The United States has declared its intention to more closely scrutinize the efficacy of its assistance monies. In September 2003, the United States completed an assistance review and announced cuts in two programs. The summer 2003 exit of the American firm AES, which had been engaged in the electricity distribution sector, was a major setback for the economy and investment in Georgia. On another front, in June 2003, Georgia was placed on Tier 3 status with regard to the Trafficking Victims’ Protection Act, which could have led to a suspension of all non-trade, non-humanitarian related assistance. During a 90-day grace period the Georgian government took sufficient steps to warrant a reassessment, and subsequently was placed on Tier 2 and thus did not lose any assistance.
Recentley at
It is entirely possible that Russia and/or Georgia could drag the U.S. into the war. After all, Mr Saakashvili recently stated that this is not a war between Georgia and Russaa but a war against the West and the Kremlin.
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August 11th, 2008 at 6:33 am
[...] nytexan at BlueBloggin points out, as the Gerogia Russia war continues and Bush plays with U.S. athletes at the Olympics, Could The U.S. Get Pulled Into Georgia’s War? [...]
August 11th, 2008 at 6:35 am
[...] nytexan at BlueBloggin points out, as the Gerogia Russia war continues and Bush plays with U.S. athletes at the Olympics, Could The U.S. Get Pulled Into Georgia’s War? [...]
August 11th, 2008 at 6:39 am
The attack was timed to be near our election knowing that we could not start another war. Our politicans still wear bloomers.
August 11th, 2008 at 8:03 am
[...] nytexan at BlueBloggin points out, as the Gerogia Russia war continues and Bush plays with U.S. athletes at the Olympics, Could The U.S. Get Pulled Into Georgia’s War? [...]
August 11th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
d tishler:
I personally don’t want to be in any wars. However, Bush will figure some way of screwing things up and we will be stuck in the middle.
August 11th, 2008 at 4:59 pm
[...] a previous post, I knew Putin would smack Bush for moving Georgian troops from Iraq to [...]
August 13th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
[...] nytexan at BlueBloggin wonders, as the Georgian-Russian war continues and Bush plays with U.S. athletes at the Olympics … Could The U.S. Get Pulled Into Georgia’s War? [...]
August 14th, 2008 at 7:53 am
[...] nytexan at BlueBloggin points out, as the Gerogia Russia war continues and Bush plays with U.S. athletes at the Olympics, Could The U.S. Get Pulled Into Georgia’s War? [...]