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Georgia to become NATO member: Merkel
AFP ^ | 17 Aug 2008

Posted on 08/17/2008 8:18:58 AM PDT by Grzegorz 246

TBILISI (AFP) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday in the Georgian capital that the ex-Soviet republic, currently mired in conflict with Russia, will join NATO.

"Georgia will become a member of NATO if it wants to -- and it does want to," she said before talks with President Mikheil Saakashvili in Tbilisi.

It was one of the strongest statements yet of support for Georgia's NATO membership bid, which is fiercely opposed by Russia.

(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Germany; News/Current Events; Russia
KEYWORDS: georgia; merkel; nato; saakashvili; southossetia
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1 posted on 08/17/2008 8:19:00 AM PDT by Grzegorz 246
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To: valkyry1; voteNRA; Monkey Face; MajorChaos; rrstar96; Jimmy Valentine; Arthur Wildfire! March; ...
Eastern European ping list

FRmail me to be added or removed from this Eastern European ping list

2 posted on 08/17/2008 8:22:01 AM PDT by Grzegorz 246
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To: Grzegorz 246
Holy cow (if true).

Could this have been one of the few times where Russia got caught playing checkers, rather than chess?

3 posted on 08/17/2008 8:22:51 AM PDT by Dr. Frank fan
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To: Grzegorz 246

I find it funny that Russia has fast tracked exactly what they didn’t want by this act of theirs.

I hope this means that Europe is ready to stand up to them. Given the two conservative leaders in Germany and France, this is good. A few years ago, this would have gotten a much different result.


4 posted on 08/17/2008 8:23:25 AM PDT by autumnraine
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To: Grzegorz 246

AFP - German Chancellor Merkel shakes hands with Georgian President Saakashvili during a visit to Tblisi. Merkel has said that the ex-Soviet republic -- currently mired in conflict with Russia -- will join NATO.
5 posted on 08/17/2008 8:25:25 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper (Vote For McCain But Trust In The LORD.)
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To: Grzegorz 246
Fantastic, the sooner the better.

Also need to admit the Ukraine. Putin will be invading the Ukraine next.

He obviously plans on taking back all the countries that became free of Russia after Ronald Reagan ended the cold war.

6 posted on 08/17/2008 8:27:55 AM PDT by Dustbunny (Freedom prospers when religion is vibrant and the rule of law under God is acknowledged. The Gipper)
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To: Grzegorz 246

Finally, something useful out of Berlin.


7 posted on 08/17/2008 8:28:48 AM PDT by Camel Joe (liberal=socialist=royalist/imperialist pawn=enemy of Freedom)
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To: Camel Joe

Because the rest of the West has just been so awesome??


8 posted on 08/17/2008 8:30:06 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper (Vote For McCain But Trust In The LORD.)
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To: Grzegorz 246

I get the feeling that this is like France and England guaranteeing to come to Poland’s aid back in the ‘30s.


9 posted on 08/17/2008 8:31:21 AM PDT by Oatka (A society of sheep must in time beget a government of wolves." –Bertrand de Jouvenel)
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To: Grzegorz 246

What is the shape of NATO?

Could Germany, France, and others pull together a viable military force and insert it into Georgia in a matter of hours?

I believe Iraq is not a NATO operation and Afghanistan is a very small NATO operation.

Does NATO leadership believe they need UN permission to respond militarily?


10 posted on 08/17/2008 8:31:43 AM PDT by Tai_Chung
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To: Berlin_Freeper

Hey, Reagan told Gorbachev to tear down that Wall, and he did.

The rest is up to you guys, lol


11 posted on 08/17/2008 8:32:09 AM PDT by mkjessup (If the choice is a suntanned Jimmy Carter or a Cranky Old Guy, I'm with the Cranky Old Guy)
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To: Oatka

Would saying nothing suit you better?


12 posted on 08/17/2008 8:32:19 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper (Vote For McCain But Trust In The LORD.)
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To: mkjessup

“Hey, Reagan told Gorbachev to tear down that Wall, and he did.”

“Gorbachev did”? Funny, I missed that.


13 posted on 08/17/2008 8:33:45 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper (Vote For McCain But Trust In The LORD.)
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To: Berlin_Freeper

I think he’s saying that it’s a noble thing to do, just like it was in the ‘30s.


14 posted on 08/17/2008 8:34:58 AM PDT by GOP_Party_Animal
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To: Grzegorz 246

Europe gets a backbone.

They tried doing it the old way, with Sarko’s deal. And Russia spat in Europe’s face.

Russia, ironically, may have just strengthened NATO, rather than hurting it.


15 posted on 08/17/2008 8:37:18 AM PDT by DesScorp
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To: Berlin_Freeper
Not particularly, just thanking God that Merkel is there rather than Schroeder. The silence from Great Britain on this puzzles me still. Schroeder would have taken this opportunity to announce a new partnership with Russia on one thing or another.
16 posted on 08/17/2008 8:38:22 AM PDT by Camel Joe (liberal=socialist=royalist/imperialist pawn=enemy of Freedom)
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To: Tai_Chung

“What is the shape of NATO?”

If NATO is as encouraging to allies as this forum, then I would say not very good.


17 posted on 08/17/2008 8:38:30 AM PDT by Berlin_Freeper (Vote For McCain But Trust In The LORD.)
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To: Berlin_Freeper
“Gorbachev did”? Funny, I missed that.

Right. Gorbachev crumbled. He didn't make the wall crumble.

18 posted on 08/17/2008 8:38:46 AM PDT by GOP_Party_Animal
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To: Grzegorz 246

“Georgia will become a member of NATO if it wants to; and it does want to.”
- - -
It seems to me that current German Chancellor Angela Merkel
found it necessary to (or perhaps was chosen to)
be the one to make this statement at this time in order to counter the statements
that were made yesterday by former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder
when he (in defense of his russian employers) said that the current hostilities
came as a result of Georgia provoking Russia.


19 posted on 08/17/2008 8:39:16 AM PDT by Repeal The 17th
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To: Berlin_Freeper
“Hey, Reagan told Gorbachev to tear down that Wall, and he did.”
“Gorbachev did”? Funny, I missed that.


Gorbachev permitted that wall to come down by default, i.e., when the German people on both sides of the wall started dismantling it, you didn't see East German and/or Soviet troops opening fire on the crowds.

If Gorbachev had wished to keep the Berlin Wall in place, he had every means of doing so, and he chose not to.

Happy to help you out there.
20 posted on 08/17/2008 8:49:49 AM PDT by mkjessup (If the choice is a suntanned Jimmy Carter or a Cranky Old Guy, I'm with the Cranky Old Guy)
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