[aaus-list] AP Photos: Civilians who Saakashvili bombed with"Hailstorm"

[Vadim]

Andrew,

I am not talking about a stream of selected facts. There is a single
fact -- "Hailstorm" systems without any warning to civilians -- that
suddenly undermines 95% of everything that's said about the Ossetian
conflict.

There is nothing to weave. On the contrary, this fact cannot be made simpler.

The implications for Ukraine is that the blind, unconditional support
of Saakashvili will be highly damaging, destabilizing to Ukraine and
the entire region. Russians have a strong point and it is very
important to recognize that. Saakashvili gave pro-Russian forces in
Ukraine a very fertile ground for provocations -- read what Ukrainian
communists are now saying. This is VERY dangerous for Ukraine. The
only option for Ukraine that can find respect in Ukraine, Georgia AND
Russia is to act from a moral high ground and condemn any military
action from any side.

Supporting military action can only create more "pretext designed to
fan Russian great-power nationalism at home and to expand Russia's
power abroad".

There is no long-term military solution in Georgia. Ukraine should be
the source of stability in the region and pursue active diplomacy.

Will NATO now want to accept Georgia or Ukraine after all this? Until
the Ossetian conflict is fully resolved this won't happen. And
"answering Russians", as Dick Cheney suggested (see BBC News) will
only make things worse and create many more "pretexts".

Vadim





On Mon, Aug 11, 2008 at 1:23 PM, Sorokowski, Andrew (ENRD)
<Andrew.Sorokowski at usdoj.gov> wrote:
> I believe Mr. Berezhny's point is that a stream of selected facts
> obviously intended to support a single interpretation is "propaganda"
> and not appropriate on the AAUS list. I agree.
> I think the appropriate focus of Georgia-related discussion on this list
> -- and by discussion I mean analysis, not bare citation of facts --
> would be not Mr. Saakashvili's alleged criminality, or the "insanity" of
> war (I would say its immorality, for alas, this one is very sanely
> calculated), but the implications of the Georgian crisis for Ukraine,
> for example the Crimea or the Donbas. There is plenty to discuss there.
>
>
> Andrew Sorokowski
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: aaus-list-bounces at ukrainianstudies.org
> [mailto:aaus-list-bounces at ukrainianstudies.org] On Behalf Of Vadim
> Sent: Monday, August 11, 2008 1:03 PM
> To: oles at berezhny.net
> Cc: aaus
> Subject: Re: [aaus-list] AP Photos: Civilians who Saakashvili bombed
> with"Hailstorm"
>
> Why is this propaganda? Am I not using facts? Please respond exactly
> and don't flood the list with factless statements.
>
> Any war is insanity. The direct conclusion from the facts is that
> Saakashvili is as much a war criminal as Putin is.
>
> Vadim
>
>
>
>
> On Mon, Aug 11, 2008 at 12:50 PM,  <oles at berezhny.net> wrote:
>>
>>
>> PLEASE STOP THIS PROPAGANDA ON THE AAUS LIST!
>>
>> Than you very much.
>>
>>
>>
>> Oles Berezhny
>> Ukrainian Language and Culture Instructor
>> Foreign Service Institute
>> Washington, DC
>>
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