Posted on 08/11/2008 11:11:31 AM PDT by kronos77
Belgrade, 11 August (AKI) – The deadly conflict between Russia and Georgia in the breakaway province of South Ossetia is an indirect result of Kosovo's declaration of independence in February, Serbian analysts and politicians said on Monday.
“If there wasn’t a ‘Kosovo precedent’, as the greatest world powers headed by the United States called the secession of a part of Serbian territory, there wouldn’t have been a war in South Ossetia,” Oliver Ivanovic, Serbian government official in charge of Kosovo told the Belgrade daily Blic.
Ivanovic said that Kosovo's example was “inspiring to South Ossetia, so they wanted to strain relations and to define their position.”
Georgia wanted to solve the problem of separatist South Ossetia by the use of force, just like Serbia had tried to do in Kosovo in 1999, he explained. .. Commentator Dragan Petrovic told Tanjug news agency that the United States had encouraged a conflict between Russia and Georgia to strengthen its influence in the region.
“The Americans want to drive a wedge between Georgia and Russia to improve their position in the area because of an oil pipeline, future actions against Iran, to isolate pro-Russian Armenia and to encourage the aspirations of the Muslim population in the North Caucasus,” Petrovic said.
Former Serbian foreign minister Goran Svilanovic said he now saw Georgia as a “Russian sphere of interest”.
He said it will soon “become clear to everyone in Russia, Georgia and the countries in the region”.
(Excerpt) Read more at adnkronos.com ...
The Basque should have their own republic. They have their own separate language appart from spanish and their cultural ties are totally different from either Spain or France.
No they shouldn't. Terrorism should not be rewarded with sovereignty.
They have their own separate language appart from spanish and their cultural ties are totally different from either Spain or France.
As an American I don't buy into the notion that the determinative factors in nationhood are language or race.
Basque culture is not practically distinguishable from Spanish culture or French culture.
Basques, Spaniards and French all live pretty similar lives in the eyar 2008.
Agree - our support of Kosovo independance was very wrong.
Kosovo became predominantly ethnic Albanian way after WWII because of illegal immigration AND major ethnic cleansing of the Serbs living in the region.
BTW - the Kosovo region has ties to Serb culture/ethnicity back over 1000 years. And as the Serbs were cleansed from the territory, the Kosovars would destroy churchs that were centuries old (including some over 1000 years old) and replace them with mosques.
A parallel in our country would be for illegal immigration to happen in eastern Massachusetts (let’s assume Mexican, for this exercise), and after achieving a majority population (thru murder and terror tactics to displace the original people - then the Mexican group wanted “Independence”. Our claim on that territory (Plymouth Rock and all) - would be less reliable than the Serb claims on Kosovo territory.
BTW2 - Kosovo region is a rich with natural resources.
BTW3 - Kosovo has a region that is still majority Serb, but won’t allow it to break away and join Serbia.
Gori is his birthplace.
The area controlled by “The Republic Of South Ossetia” with Russia’s help is smaller than the New Jersey county I live in. Its population is half the size of the population of the suburban township I live in.
At a certain level it becomes farcical - and “The Republic Of South Ossetia” is way below that threshhold.
What in heavens name is your point? Even if it is the size of a postage stamp it is still trying to break away. It sides with Russia. It appears that small as it is, it is of great interest to both Russia and Georgia, enough to start a war over. So what is your point? Do you have one? You may think it farcical, but it is happening nevertheless. Can you not see the obvious?
My point is that this is purely a Russian pretext.
The "Republic Of South Ossetia" would not be conceivable except for Russian agitation.
45,000 people in a nation of 4 million would never even think of starting a separatist movement unless it was financed, sponsored and fostered from the outside.
“As an American I don’t buy into the notion that the determinative factors in nationhood are language or race.”
The problem with that statement is that probably 90%+ of the world population does.
Yet where would the internet be today without Vanatu!
The root of the dispute is very recent and undoubtedly has something to do with goats.
Goats are a best bet for the place in the near future.
How conceivable is the “nation” of Kosovo or even Bosnia without NATO troops?
What goes around, comes around.
I'd suggest you research the Trepca mines so you won't say such silly things in the future.
“I’ve been to Kosovo. What we’ve done there is in no way comparable to what Russia is doing to Georgia. You are the ignorant one supporting by your remarks Putin’s right to bully his neighbors by comparing to the US’s recognizing Kosovo is absurd.”
You are right. The Russians haven’t bombed Georgia for 78 days yet...they haven’t been bombed back to the ‘stone age’ as the US military heads were saying at the time...I guess we’ve got a ways to go yet....
Trepca has rich metal deposits and just before NATO's terrorist campaign, Serbia had inked a deal with a Greek firm to help extract it. Then NATO made up some bullshit about Trepca polluting the environment to justify taking it over, actually, the first lame excuse was the Serbs were burying Albanians there which turned out to be a lie.
Jamie Shea and the propaganda brigade was in full force that year.
“The population of Kosovo is 2.1 million. The population of South Ossetia is maybe 50,000 Ossetians and 30,000 Georgians.
South Ossetia isn’t a breakaway republic. It is a couple of towns.”
...and Liechtenstein? Monaco? Gibralter? Their population too small to qualify them to be an independent country?
Get real. Get a good argument for goodness sakes.
What is good for the Albanians of Kosovo is good for any people that want to separate from a sovereign nation and form their own country...that is what the US supported with a relentless 78 day bombing...maybe the Georgians will get off a little easier than the Serbs did at the hands of the US and NATO....
Heh and Montenegro only has about 650,000. Wideawake was just caught sleeping.
Stalin was an Ossetian and the Ossetians helped him and the Bolsheviks conquer Georgia for Communism.
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