Under Cover of Assent
Or perhaps blatant dissent, posing as helpful agreement, buying time and opportunity. Nikolas Sarkozy in his double role as France's president and current European Union chief placator-and-reason-monger, felt confident he had bargained in good faith with Vladimir Putin through Dmitri Medvedev, and a cessation of hostilities was in the works - instanter.A pull-back of troops, re-positioning to the former boundaries, time-out to sanely and humanely discuss the trifling disagreement between big and little brother that has erupted into a horrendous family quarrel with the parents committing furiously out-of-control infanticide.
Victory in achieving peace was lamentably short-lived, however, as Russia's convoy of vehicles, field guns, armoured personnel carriers left embattled Gori only to feint a march toward Tbilisi. Panic in the streets, as a very chastened and hugely furious Georgian military set up positions outside their capital to defend it to their very last breath.
Vladimir Putin is enjoying himself enormously. Nothing quite like playing cat-and-mouse when you're the cat and the mouse has been insufficiently cowed and humiliated. Lay it on. Last time around it was Mr. Putin who was humiliated and driven to distraction when the West coddled Kosovo into sovereignty, snubbing Serbia's sovereign borders.
Now Moscow has freed Ossentians and Abkhazians to emulate them, giving them free rein to invade Georgian villages and murder their people, and loot to their hearts' content. Equal opportunity in wild celebrations, rape, murder, looting, instilling a further pandemonium of fear into the hearts of the Georgian population, still awaiting American rescue.
And here's the most precious irony of all; it is Chechen conscripts who have been tasked with the forward mission, advancing into Georgia, guarding checkpoints, halting traffic between Georgia's Black Sea ports, to Tbilisi. Chechnya, which sought to advance its own bid for autonomous separation from its tyrannical master. How darkly, bleakly poetic can an infuriated bear aspire to?
"Chechens and South Ossentians are killing people in the villages"! shouted an old woman, making her painfully wounded way toward Tbilisi. Russian soldiers know better; this is hysterical nonsense. They and their country are motivated solely by a humanitarian desire to assist wherever they can. As they stand by while South Ossentians go on about their looting adventure.
A desperate Georgian population, besieged and bewildered, angered by their president's lack of awareness, will in all probability not seek to unseat him, simply because that would be to perform a dirty little task that Moscow has recommended. Instead, they are picking up arms and going along to the front line.
Russia ignores its honour-bound signature on a pact to halt its military incursion into Georgia, and Georgia's civilian population is determined to retain its sovereign independence, its geographic borders and its honour.
Labels: Traditions, Troublespots, World Crises
posted by Pieface @ Thursday, August 14, 2008
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