US, Russia trade charges over Georgia amid war warnings

[FarCenter]

TBILISI (AFP) US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice began talks here Wednesday with Georgian leaders as the United States and Russia accused each other of stoking violence in Georgia that could erupt into war. Her trip to Tbilisi, capital of the former Soviet state of Georgia, adds to US-Russian tension over a deal Rice signed Tuesday in Prague to deploy part of a US missile shield in the Czech Republic, a former Soviet satellite.

Washington and Moscow have traded accusations of fanning separatist fires in Georgia itself, where violence has flared in the past week in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, two regions that broke from Tbilisi after the Soviet collapse. A senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity to reporters accompanying Rice, accused Russia of "greatly escalating" military and political pressure on Georgia with possibly dangerous consequences. "It is our belief that a military cycle of escalation will simply develop a momentum of its own and could lead to a catastrophe in the region," the official said, warning of "fighting that would be horrific in human terms."

...

Due to dine Wednesday with Georgia's pro-Western president, Mikheil Saakashvili, Rice came to support Georgia's territorial integrity and sovereign "right" to seek membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Hours before her arrival, Russia's foreign ministry issued a statement accusing Georgia of carrying out actions "capable of taking the region to the brink of a new armed conflict." The ministry said those who "shield the provocateurs and blame everything on Moscow are doing a great disservice to the Georgian leadership and strengthening its sense of impunity." The statement explicitly referred to the US State Department.

...

In Berlin, meanwhile, the US European Command said US troops have started joint training exercises with soldiers from Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Ukraine, underlining the region's strategic importance. EUCOM, based in the southern German city of Stuttgart, said the exercises had begun Saturday at Vaziani military base, less than 100 kilometres (60 miles) from the Russian border.

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We should shortly be able to leave behind these terrorist annoyances and get back to Mutual Assured Destruction.

[DarthDem]

1. Not That Big of a Deal

Just some strong words . . . I'm no fan of Dumbya's foreign policy, and Rice is one of the dumbest people alive, but this isn't really some sort of reignition of the Cold War. Reuters' take on this and the Czech shield is much more nuanced and seems to have a better grip on the situation.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080709/wl_nm/gb_russia_dc;_ylt=AtePP5c8F.Mt5VWJdd6K.qNm.3QA