[aaus-list] Kagan and Kristol on the West's response to Putin's war against Georgia

[Vadim]

This article starts with a fully immoral phrase: "The details of who
did what to precipitate Russia's war against Georgia are not very
important." -- Using "Hailstorm" systems ("mini-nuclear" weapon in its
devastation effect) against civilians is an unimportant detail ?

All details are important. This author has no credibility.

Why did Saakashvili give Putin such an easy "pretext designed to fan
Russian great-power nationalism at home and to expand Russia's power
abroad" ?

Vadim




On Mon, Aug 11, 2008 at 12:06 PM, Walter R Iwaskiw <wiwa at loc.gov> wrote:
> "Putin's aggression against Georgia should not be traced only to its
> NATO aspirations or his pique at Kosovo's independence. It is primarily
> a response to the 'color revolutions' in Ukraine and Georgia in 2003 and
> 2004, when pro-Western governments replaced pro-Russian ones. What the
> West celebrated as a flowering of democracy the autocratic Putin saw as
> geopolitical and ideological encirclement.
>
> Ever since, Putin has been determined to stop and, if possible, reverse
> the pro-Western trend on his borders. He seeks not only to prevent
> Georgia and Ukraine from joining NATO but also to bring them under
> Russian control. Beyond that, he seeks to carve out a zone of influence
> within NATO, with a lesser security status for countries along Russia's
> strategic flanks. That is the primary motive behind Moscow's opposition
> to U.S. missile defense programs in Poland and the Czech Republic.
>
> His war against Georgia is part of this grand strategy. Putin cares no
> more about a few thousand South Ossetians than he does about Kosovo's
> Serbs. Claims of pan-Slavic sympathy are pretexts designed to fan
> Russian great-power nationalism at home and to expand Russia's power
> abroad.
>
> Unfortunately, such tactics always seem to work. While Russian bombers
> attack Georgian ports and bases, Europeans and Americans, including very
> senior officials in the Bush administration, blame the West for pushing
> Russia too hard on too many issues. "
>
> Robert Kagan, "Putin Makes His Move," The Washington Post, August 11,
> 2008
>
> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/10/AR2008081001871.html?hpid=opinionsbox1
>
> ***
>
> "... [C]onsider the implications of our turning away from Georgia for
> other aspiring pro-Western governments in the neighborhood, like
> Ukraine's. Shouldn't we therefore now insist that normal relations
> with Russia are impossible as long as the aggression continues, strongly
> reiterate our commitment to the territorial integrity of Georgia and
> Ukraine, and offer emergency military aid to Georgia?"
>
> William Kristol, "Will Russia Get Away With It?," The New York Times,
> August 10, 2008
>
> http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/11/opinion/11kristol.html
>
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