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Merkel meets Medvedev, Russians deliver threats
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday met Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to press him to respect Georgia's territory. But Russia's ambassador to Berlin said Merkel would be shown proof of Georgian attrocities in South Ossetia."We have pictures!" Merkel and Medvedev held talks at the Russian presidential residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, close to the Georgian border and the Moscow-backed rebel region of Abkhazia, Kremlin officials said. While Germany has close ties to Russia, Merkel has criticized Russia's military onslaught in Georgia, sparked last week by a Georgian attack on separatist South Ossetia. Merkel earlier this week promised to have stern words with Medvedev over the conflict with Georgia. Her spokesman said that she would "make it clear" to Medvedev that the problems in the Caucasus region cannot be solved by military means, following the fighting between Russian and Georgian forces over the last week. "Stern words" = "Chocolate" diplomacy However Germany's desire not to isolate Russia has also been evident in diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict. On Thursday, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier urged the European Union to "keep the lines open" to both sides. "We must criticize what needs to be criticized and we have done this in the past, including with clear words when necessary towards Russia... with regard to Russian bombing of Georgia and the presence of Russian troops in Georgia proper," Steinmeier said. "But we should also pursue a policy which is sensible and realistic." Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate. For Germany, life is like a box of chocolates. The Russian ambassador to Germany, Vladimir Kotenev, told the German daily newspaper Bild on Friday that Medvedev would present evidence to Merkel that Georgian forces had committed atrocities in South Ossetia."The Georgian troops have murdered women and children, set churches full of refugees on fire and flattened entire villages," Kotenev told the paper. "We can show concrete proof of this." Russians are at their most ludicrous when they play the "victim" He also said that Medvedev wanted to warn Merkel against letting eastern European countries have too much influence over the EU's policies toward Russia. "President Medvedev doesn't want to split the EU, but he will make clear to the chancellor that eastern European EU members should not drive the EU's Russia policy all alone. That would prevent a true partnership," he told Bild. "We have CONCRETE PROOF that the Georgian fascist superpower has committed atrocities. Oh, by the way, we demand that the EU autocrats ignore the security concerns of our future subjects, IYKWIMAITYD." Polish President Lech Kaczynski has personally come to Saakashvili's defence, visiting Tbilisi earlier this week. Along with three other leaders of ex-communist EU states, he slammed the peace plan brokered by French President Nicolas Sarkozy to end the conflict for failing to insist on Georgia's territorial integrity. But Kotenev also rejected international criticism of Moscow's actions in the Caucasus region. "Whoever wants to pillory Russia now is putting credence in a Georgian regime responsible for a genocide. That mocks the victims," he said, adding that it was up to the West if a "new ice age" with Moscow developed. "Ice Age", of course, means no gas for you. The location of Friday's meeting between Merkel and Medvedev, at a presidential residence in Sochi, had important significance for Russians as the resort is to host the Winter Olympics in 2014. On Thursday two US lawmakers, Allyson Schwartz and Bill Shuster, began campaigning for the International Olympic Committee to pull the Winter Games from Sochi as punishment for Russia's actions. It's a start. Posted by: mrp 2008-08-15 |
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