Georgia's South Ossetia Conflict - Political Commentary

[Jedburgh]

BBC, 8 Aug 08: Heavy Fighting in South Ossetia

Georgian forces and South Ossetian separatists have been exchanging heavy fire just hours after agreeing to a ceasefire and Russian-mediated talks.

Russian media reports said Georgia had launched a tank-led attack on the separatist stronghold of Tskhinvali, with at least 15 killed in shelling.

Georgia says its aim is to finish "a criminal regime" and restore order.

Moscow has called on the international community to jointly work "to avert massive bloodshed and new victims".

At Russia's request, members of the UN Security Council are to hold a rare emergency session shortly to discuss a response to the escalating violence.....

[kaur]

Let's wait what will say Lavrov, Medvedev and Putin.

When someone starts war, then he must vision the peace after war ... Which side started the war?

Felgenhauer writes:

Kokoity and other Ossetian officials seem to be bent on provoking a major Russian intervention, but apparently not everyone in Moscow is ready to plunge headlong into war.

http://www.jamestown.org/edm/article...cle_id=2373294

If this is the truth, how will other participants save the face?

Dan Fried, the US assistant secretary of state, said Washington and Moscow would jointly work to end the fighting. “It appears that the South Ossetians have instigated this uptick in violence,” he said. “We have urged the Russians to urge their South Ossetian friends to pull back and show greater restraint. And we believe that the Russians are trying to do just that.”

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6e29e178-6...nclick_check=1

[kaur]

How to win international support?

Georigian site in English.
http://www.civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=18957

Russian site in English.
http://www.russiatoday.com/news/news/28640

[Rank amateur]

It's interesting that this is happening when the world's media is focused on the opening of the Olympic games.

[Rex Brynen]

If the Georgians are calculating that the Russian response will be muted because of the Olympics, I think they're badly miscalculating.

Nice footage of a Georgian BM-21 (?) battery fire at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7546639.stm (the BBC also have raw footage of Georgian CAS and Russian armor reinforcements).

[Rank amateur]

If the Georgians are calculating that the Russian response will be muted because of the Olympics, I think they're badly miscalculating.

More likely Georgia decided that the best time to establish population control is when the media isn't watching. I suspect that's because they're not planning to emphasize winning hearts and minds.

[Norfolk]

Eurasia Daily Monitor reported last week that battalion of Russian Railroad Troops had finished a two month's reconstruction of a railroad that had been out of service since fighting back in 1992. With the 58th Army on the frontier, once that railroad was finished, the Georgians knew it was on. The Olympics of course are convenient to deflect international public opinion from Russian activities.

Apparently, the Russian reconnaissance battalion leading Russian troops into the South Ossetian capital today has been caught in a bit of a snare laid by the Georgians. Things are getting real interesting. I wonder if news from Abkhazia may not be far off.

Now I'm waiting to see what happens in Eritrea, too, with the imminent departure of the UN force there.