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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| GEORGIA: PRESIDENT SAYS GEORGIAN TROOPS CONTROL SOUTH OSSETIA |
| 2008-08-09 |
| Some interesting pieces of information. Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, addressing the nation via television August 8, indicated that Georgia had won the opening battle for control of the separatist territory of South Ossetia. The outcome of the war, however, remains very much in doubt. Clashes began August 7 between Georgian troops and South Ossetian separatists. [See related EurasiaNet story]. After nightfall, Saakashvili went on television to tell viewers that Georgian forces "completely control" Tskhinvali, the South Ossetian separatist capital, as well as "all population points and all villages" in the territory. The Georgian leader went on to call for national unity and attempted to cast the military operation as an unavoidable action amid the country’s transformation from formerly Soviet republic to a Western-oriented democracy. "The fight for the future is worth fighting," he said. "If we stand together, there is no force that can defeat Georgia, defeat freedom, defeat a nation striving for freedom -- no matter how many planes, tanks, and missiles they use against us." It remains to be seen whether Georgia will be able to consolidate its battlefield gains. Russian leaders have vowed to punish Tbilisi, and Russian leader Dmitry Medvedev told state television that "the guilty will get the punishment they deserve." A Russian Defense Ministry spokesman announced that Russian troops have been dispatched to South Ossetia, nominally to support Russian peacekeeping troops already on the ground, the official RIA-Novosti news agency reported. In addition, witnesses have reported that dozens of Russian tanks and armored vehicles have moved into the conflict zone, along with hundreds of supposed "volunteers" ready to assist beleaguered South Ossetian separatist forces. According to Russian military sources, at least 10 Russian peacekeepers had been killed and 30 wounded during the initial Georgian thrust into the separatist-held territory, according to a RIA-Novosti report. Meanwhile, Tbilisi accused Russia of conducting electronic warfare against Georgia. Several Georgian government websites, including those operated by ministries of defense and foreign affairs, came under attack by Russian hackers, according to an official statement. The news website Civil Georgia also was inaccessible due to hacker interference. The cyber attack was part of “a systematic effort by the Russian Federation to undermine the sovereignty of Georgia,” the government statement said. As night fell over Tskhinvali, Georgian officials in Tbilisi and troops in South Ossetia braced for a Russian riposte. There were some early indications that the Kremlin might not limit its response to Ossetia. For example, the Rustavi-2 television station in Georgia reported late August 8 that jets coming from the direction of Armenia bombed a site in the southwestern Georgian hamlet of Bolnisi, not far from the borders with Azerbaijan and Armenia. Such reports are especially ominous, given that they portend a widening of the fighting. US President George W. Bush conferred with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Beijing on August 8. "We urge restraint on all sides -- that violence would be curtailed and that direct dialogue could ensue in order to help resolve their differences," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino told reporters. Some Georgian officials, including Georgian National Security Council chief Kakha Lomaia, have publicly compared Tbilisi’s current predicament to that faced by Hungary in 1956 and the former Czechoslovakia in 1968, references to invasions carried out by Soviet military forces. Lomaia has announced that roughly half of the approximately 2,000 Georgian troops now in Iraq as part of the US-led coalition were being brought home to help contend with the domestic security crisis. Although the strategic situation late August 8 seemed favorable to Georgia, Saakashvili sounded as though his side was on the defensive. He conveyed a feeling that the challenges in the coming days will only mount for Georgia. "We will not give up, and we will achieve victory. I call on everyone to mobilize. I declare, here and now, a universal mobilization of the nation and the Republic of Georgia," he said during his televised address. "I hereby announce that reserve officers are called up -- everyone must come to mobilization center and fight to save our country." |
| Posted by:phil_b |
| #16 I read that the Georgians requested US airlift for their troops, whether it happens..? |
| Posted by: linker 2008-08-09 19:45 |
| #15 The Georgians can also drive via Turkey. Nothing says they can't take the armored vehicles they are using in Iraq with them. In addition, is it our problem if they were well supplied with .50, Javelin and Stinger while in Iraq? |
| Posted by: ed 2008-08-09 18:35 |
| #14 Fly them back in US Transports as part of the MNF, under escort of US F-22s. Dare anyone to say anything. (and be sure to hav them supplied with Javelin systems, etc, that just thappened to be on the plane). Also, encourage the Israelis to sell the Georgianas a battery of patriots for immediate deployment (while shipping another one to Israel). |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2008-08-09 13:15 |
| #13 Maybe some ammo and some of the ammo dumps captured in Iraq being sent to Georgia would help too, since most of it is Russian and Chinese manufacture. It will be interesting to see how the Georgian troops now in Iraq are re-deployed home. Direct airlift into contested airspace over Georgia would be dicey, and sealift with the Black Sea Fleet active in the area wouldn't be wise. Will Turkey allow transit? |
| Posted by: mrp 2008-08-09 12:16 |
| #12 The whole Israeli/pipeline aspect of this is most interesting. The NATO decision to resist the US proposal to put Georgia on the path to membership showed a European lack of will. So, given the opening, Putie appears to have determined he can stop the energy end-around the pipeline would have given the Georgians and the Europeans, not to mentioned the Turks. SO .... by attacking the pipeline, he gets to continue the stranglehold Russia has on European energy demands and increase influence on European politics-the famed "soft" power move. Watching the Iranian connection to Russia also shows an emerging power axis, and anti-Israeli bias. The sale of P-300 ADA systems to Iran and this action may well be the signal to the Isreali's to act against Iran before the election..... |
| Posted by: NoMoreBS 2008-08-09 12:12 |
| #11 I just noted that the International Herald Tribune is reporting that Putin has left China and is in a neighboring Russian area in his role as Prime Minister to coordinate "refugee assistance". With his direct on the ground command involvement, I imagine the next 24 hrous will give the clearest possible signature of Russia's future direction. The parallels to German actions in 36-38 are interesting. |
| Posted by: NoMoreBS 2008-08-09 12:06 |
| #10 I wonder how we could give them a helpful bump without making it obvious. I think we are doing that already with satellite intel sharing. It would make the most sense and providing coordinates to Georgia's artillery would help the most on that little mountain road, along with damage assessment. Maybe some ammo and some of the ammo dumps captured in Iraq being sent to Georgia would help too, since most of it is Russian and Chinese manufacture. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2008-08-09 11:37 |
| #9 One MCLC and the Roki tunnel is shut. I beleive that is the only red-ball route in thr ethe mountaints. Resupply and road movement into that place from the N look to be a stone bitch. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2008-08-09 11:34 |
| #8 One hopes we're loading up the Georgian units leaving Iraq with arms, ammunition, and satellite photos, at the very least. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2008-08-09 11:31 |
| #7 I wonder how we could give them a helpful bump without making it obvious. |
| Posted by: Alistaire Grise9814 2008-08-09 11:06 |
| #6 I liked the reference to the 10 Russian Peacekeepers killed. I guess they get a failing grade in that effort. Somehow with our contingency of military assistance (training) staff and contractors there - we are going to get involved either directly or indirectly and that will be interesting to watch. |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2008-08-09 10:28 |
| #5 The world will become very interesting if the Russians lose this thing. It's very important to the national ego that they're still a world power despite losing their Soviet empire. How will they react if they can't even beat a small country like Georgia? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2008-08-09 10:19 |
| #4 Worse, that road is a mountain tunnel at the Georgian-Russian border. The road is closed in winter, even w/o trying to blow up the tunnel. |
| Posted by: ed 2008-08-09 10:13 |
| #3 I have no problem if they use IED on the commie scum. |
| Posted by: Cheretch Crereng9873 2008-08-09 09:37 |
| #2 If Russia can get its armour down the road from the border then Georgia has lost. And sustain them. That's the bugger. If they can be contained, they have to sit and consume. That consumption has to be maintained. One road can only support so much lift. The |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2008-08-09 09:31 |
| #1 Not much specific news. If Russia can get its armour down the road from the border then Georgia has lost. If Georgia has blocked the road then Russians are probably in difficulty. Reading between the lines of the Russian reports their armour hasn't reached Tskhavali. I'd be surprised if Georgia hasn't set up positions along that road. They don't even need sophisticated weapons. There must be a thousand culverts under the road and pack a few with explosives and Russia has a serious problem. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2008-08-09 04:26 |