|
Georgia standoff 'may last weeks'
US President George W. Bush said after a visit to CIA headquarters today that the standoff with Russia over Georgia could stretch "throughout the coming weeks"."My call, of course, is for the territorial integrity of Georgia to be respected and for the ceasefire agreement to be honoured," he said with CIA Director Michael Hayden and Deputy Director Steve Kappas at his side. "And we will be working this issue throughout the coming weeks. And people out here at the agency have been incredibly helpful," he said in brief remarks at the CIA. Mr Bush's visit, which ran nearly two hours over schedule, came as US officials tried to work through frequently contradictory and confusing reports from the ground on Russia's military offensive in the former Soviet republic. "Got a lot of folks, smart folks, analysing the situation on the ground, and, of course, briefing us on different possibilities that could develop in the area and the region," the president said. Mr Bush said he had sent US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to France for an assessment of a Paris-led ceasefire offer and to Georgia to showcase US support for the pro-Western government of President Mikheil Saakashvili. "She'll be coming back to brief me Saturday (local time). I'm looking forward to hearing firsthand what she has seen, what she has heard," said Mr Bush, who was to hear from the top US diplomat at his Texas ranch. Posted by: tipper 2008-08-14 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=247158 |