Posted on 11/06/2013 8:30:20 PM PST by cunning_fish
Thomas de Waal reviews Saakashvili’s presidency in Foreign Affairs. He recounts how his American cheerleaders enabled some of his most reckless behavior, including the August 2008 war:
American support served to insulate him from some of the domestic criticism — but eventually it proved to be his undoing. Although Americans and Georgians had adopted the habit of using the word “ally” to refer to each other, there was never a formal alliance between the two countries. Saakashvili allowed his judgment to be skewed by his glowing testimonials from the Bush White House.
Saakashvili’s miscalculations were tragically exposed in August 2008, when war broke out with Russia over Georgia’s breakaway province of South Ossetia. We now know that the war was triggered by Saakashvili’s decision to attack the South Ossetian town of Tskhinvali in a doomed attempt to reconquer the province by force, only to provoke a massive —and well-prepared — Russian assault on his country. Saakashvili probably believed that if he captured Tskhinvali, the United States would back him against Russia.
Saakashvili is responsible for his serious blunders, but the Bush administration’s role in encouraging him in his worst instincts needs to be remembered as an example of how not to manage relations with a would-be client. The first mistake that the Bush administration made in its handling of Georgia was the promotion of the new Georgian government as a model of both political and economic reform and the celebration of Saakashvili as a democrat. The economic reforms were real enough, but the rest was mostly nonsense. Saakashvili was given credit for being what he was not mainly because he was seen as fiercely anti-Russian and “pro-Western,” which are often mistaken as proof of adhering to liberal and democratic political principles. The semi-authoritarian nature of Saakashvili’s government
(Excerpt) Read more at theamericanconservative.com ...
That was Bush’s way of flirting with Putin. It worked, Putin is leaving his wife to be with Bush.
Idiotic article.
Replace Saakashvili with al-Maliki or Karzai, and Georgia with Iraq or Afghanistan and the essay reads the same.
Result?
Goergia loses 20% of its sovereign territory.
We know nothing of the kind except that Putin pushed this as his propaganda. I recall seeing video which showed otherwise, but even so - those in the South Ossetian town were continually sending missiles into Georgia and kidnapping children.
This is rather like blaming Israel for going into Palestine to knock out some terrorists.
Well I happen to know that the reason the Russians never went to Tbilisi is because they would have been defeated.
Compared to Shevie the scum/russian puppet, actually Misha was exactly this. Everything is relative.
As I recall Bush always said Georgia was his favorite country outside the US. He loved it there.
So they lost 20%,,BFD. That’s what happens when you start the shooting first. You move from diplomacy into artillery, all bets are off. You pays your money, you takes your chances.
>>>The first mistake that the Bush administration made in its handling of Georgia was the promotion of the new Georgian government as a model of both political and economic reform and the celebration of Saakashvili as a democrat.
Compared to Shevie the scum/russian puppet, actually Misha was exactly this. Everything is relative.<<<
I won’t argue, you are 90% correct.
>>>We know nothing of the kind except that Putin pushed this as his propaganda. I recall seeing video which showed otherwise, but even so - those in the South Ossetian town were continually sending missiles into Georgia and kidnapping children.<<<
In fact Russian propaganda has turned to be too close to truth while Georgian government produced the whole lot of ‘wag the dog’ style ‘evidence’ of Russian atrocities but a few of it could pass a smell test.
‘Dead’ victims of Russian cluster bombing sitting in a vehicles lacking any effects of weapons other than flat tires, same actors playing a civilian bombing victim and an m-4 toting soldier, ‘dead’ civilians featuring on different locations wearing different clothes.
A phone call interception between two ‘Russian soldiers’ submitted to UN allegedly proving Russian invasion prior to bombing of Ossetia by Georgian forces was simply laughable. It sounded like it was recorded in Hollywood for B-movie featuring cartoonish Russian spies.
A mem of ‘barbarian Russians’ stealing used toilets and home appliances in Georgia was laughable as well. One just need to compare an average annual income of Georgian and monthly unemployment benefits in Russia to learn why. A fact that some 20% of Georgian population at the time were living and working in Russia illegally is worth mentioning too.
Russians did nothing like that. It was enough to upload some videos from cell-phones collected from Georgian KIAs to prove Georgian atrocities.
>>> Well I happen to know that the reason the Russians never went to Tbilisi is because they would have been defeated.<<<
I think we are disagree here. Georgian military was better trained and equipped and more numerous than opposing Russian forces but it has all folded like a cheap suit. There are probably three or five cases they actually tried to engage the Russians in the early stages of war and they were running away leaving their equipment behind all the time after. Georgians aren’t any better soldiers than Arabs but they are certainly much smarter. Have you heard of any Georgian insurgency in Russian-occupied separatist regions? Unlike Chechens and Iraqis they don’t need any virgins. If Russians has moved to the capital outskirts it is very likely that the locals could treat their leader the way Italians treated Mussolini.
Russia was already invading Georgia when Saakashvili attacked the Neo-Soviet Russian occupation forces in South Ossetia. So what did Saakashvili lose by attacking them? Nothing, because nobody on Earth believes the Russian version of events or accepts Russia’s false and laughable assertions that Saakashvili attacked first. Russia already occupied 20 percent of Georgia’s territory, so Georgia did not lose their territory because it was already lost. No real countries recognize the Russian-occupied territories as independent, just KGB Putin’s communist client state Venezuela. Not even Belarus or any of Russia’s other “allies.”
A Russian jet pilot who was shot down by the Georgians defected to Georgia just because he was desperate for a Big Mac from McDonald’s.
>>>Russia was already invading Georgia when Saakashvili attacked the Neo-Soviet Russian occupation forces in South Ossetia. So what did Saakashvili lose by attacking them? Nothing, because nobody on Earth believes the Russian version of events or accepts Russia’s false and laughable assertions that Saakashvili attacked first. Russia already occupied 20 percent of Georgia’s territory, so Georgia did not lose their territory because it was already lost. No real countries recognize the Russian-occupied territories as independent, just KGB Putin’s communist client state Venezuela. Not even Belarus or any of Russia’s other “allies.”<<<
You are repeating official Georgian line which is not actually supported by either facts or earlier statements of Georgian officials.
There are no real evidence of Russian invasion prior to Georgian attack on South Ossetia.
You can actually find reports from media about Georgian operations coming a day before a Russian counter-attack. Some of them featuring Georgian officials stating they are acting against separatist rebels. None of them mentioned any Russian invasion at the time.
>>>A Russian jet pilot who was shot down by the Georgians defected to Georgia just because he was desperate for a Big Mac from McDonald’s.<<<
LOL. Have you ever been to Russia?:-) They have either McDonalds, Burger King and Carl’s Burger there. They had it before Georgia.
Nobody believes you Russian liars. We believe our Georgian friends who fought alongside us in Iraq. The psychotic mass-murderer Putin ethnically cleansed and exterminated thousands of innocent Christian men and women to punish them for helping the USA kill Putin’s mohammedan comrade Saddam Hussein. Russia’s friend Hussein is dead and his regime is history. Saakashvili is alive and Georgia is free.
Well said, Tailgunner Joe! Bump!
>>>Life is very hard for poor conscripted slaves in the Russian military. In Russia they castrate conscripts for fun and call it “hazing.” It’s no wonder they are desperate to escape.<<<
LOL. Is it applied to jet pilots you mentioned as well?:-) Do you still read Tom Clancy to get an idea on conditions in modern Russian military?
Urals court adjourns trial of Private Sychev hazing case - June 27, 2006 - Private Andrei Sychev, 19, was allegedly attacked and tortured by fellow soldiers in army barracks in the Urals city of Chelyabinsk, 1,180 miles east of Moscow, during the New Year's holidays. Doctors had to amputate his legs and genitals following the incident.If barbaric Russian savages treat their own people this way, it's no wonder why they cannot get volunteers to serve in the military and have to force them instead. KGB Putin's Chekist regime does not deserve the loyalty of the Russian people.
It is a really awful crime. But how is it any related to a topic?
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