Russia, Georgia in conflict over breakaway province, many dead

billzhao · 发表于 2008-8-8 09:46

The Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia declared their independence from Tbilisi in the early 1990s. And since then, every Georgian leader, including current President Mikhail Saakashvili, has vowed to bring them back under Georgia's control.

No country has recognized Abkhazia or South Ossetia as independent states. But Princeton University's Jason Lyall says Russia's relations with the two regions are very tight.

They are very close and becoming increasingly so over time. In fact there is concern in Abkhazia and South Ossetia that Russia is annexing them very slowly, almost by stealth, that they are bringing them inside the fold. The leaderships, obviously, have close ties but now Abkhazia and South Ossetia are almost entirely dependent on Russia for their economies. And so both economies are actually now run on the ruble and they have transportation links to Russia only.

On more than one occasion, Russian representatives have said very firmly that they would assist Tbilisi in resolving these conflicts if Georgia abandoned its pro-NATO course.

At an emergency session of the United Nations on Thursday night, Russia failed to push through a statement that would have called on both sides to stop fighting immediately.

Council diplomats said a phrase calling on all sides to "renounce the use of force" had been unacceptable to the Georgians, backed by the United States and the Europeans.

[ 本帖最后由 billzhao 于 2008-8-8 10:27 编辑 ]

billzhao · 发表于 2008-8-8 10:26

Russia, Georgia in conflict over breakaway province, many dead

Vinay Shukla Moscow, Aug 8 (PTI) Russia today sent tanks and troops to South Ossetia after Georgia launched a major military offensive to reclaim the breakaway republic, triggering heavy street fighting that is said to have left hundreds dead or injured.
The worst outbreak of hostilities since the pro-Moscow province won de-facto independence in a war against Georgia in 1992 broke out after Georgian artillery and air assault hit provincial capital Tskhinvali.

Ten Russian peacekeepers were killed and 30 wounded in Georgian shelling in their barracks last night, Russian officials said, terming the attack a botched attempt to regain control over the province.

Russian tanks and armoured personnel carriers crossed the border and moved towards Tskhinvali, while the Defence Ministry said it has sent reinforcements for its peacekeepers.

Quoting its sources, NewsGeorgia web news portal confirmed that at least 100 tanks and armoured vehicles have crossed through the Roksky Tunnel linking Russian and Georgian parts of Ossetia partitioned by former Russian leader Joseph Stalin in North and South Ossetia.

South Ossetian separatist leader Eduard Kokoity claimed hundreds of civilians had been killed. Witnesses said the capital city has been devastated, with bodies lying around and cars and buildings damaged in shelling.

The fighting broke out as world's attention was focused on Olympic Games opening ceremony and top leaders, including Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin were in Beijing. PTI

billzhao · 发表于 2008-8-8 10:29

Russia sent columns of tanks and reportedly bombed Georgian air bases Friday after Georgia launched a major military offensive to retake the breakaway province of South Ossetia, threatening to ignite a broader conflict.

One Russian plane had dropped a bomb on the Vaziani military base near the Georgian capital, but no one was hurt, said Georgian State Minister for Reintegration Temur Yakobashvili.

More than 1,000 U.S. Marines, soldiers and airmen were at the base last month teaching combat skills.

Operation Immediate Response 2008 was held from July 15-July 30, with U.S. personnel training about 600 troops at a former Soviet base near Tbilisi, the largest city and capital of Georgia.

U.S. soldiers, Marines, and airmen taught combat skills to Georgia soldiers, as well as about 30 troops from Armenia, Azerbaijan and Ukraine. The exercise included simulated threats from roadside bombs and other challenges troops might expect in Iraq, according to U.S. military statements.

Georgia President Mikhail Saakashvili praised the exercise July 21, saying on Georgian television that it showed the country had “the best trained and equipped army” in the strategic Caucasus mountain region. The region includes Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia.

Georgia has about 2,000 troops in Iraq, making it the third-largest contributor to coalition forces after the U.S. and Britain.

Hundreds of civilians were reported dead in the worst outbreak of hostilities since the province won de facto independence in a war against Georgia that ended in 1992. Witnesses said the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali was devastated.

“I saw bodies lying on the streets, around ruined buildings, in cars,” said Lyudmila Ostayeva, 50, who had fled with her family to Dzhava, a village near the border with Russia. “It’s impossible to count them now. There is hardly a single building left undamaged.”

The fighting broke out as much of the world’s attention was focused on the start of the Olympic Games and many leaders, including Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and President Bush, were in Beijing.

The timing suggests Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili may have been counting on surprise to fulfill his longtime pledge to wrest back control of South Ossetia — a key to his hold on power.

Saakashvili agreed the timing was not coincidental, but accused Russia of being the aggressor.

“Most decision-makers have gone for the holidays,” he said in an interview with CNN. “Brilliant moment to attack a small country.”

The U.S. was sending an envoy to the region Friday to meet with the parties involved to try to end hostilities.

“We support Georgia’s territorial integrity,” State Department spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos told reporters. “We are working on mediation efforts to secure a cease-fire.”

South Ossetian separatist leader Eduard Kokoity claimed hundreds of civilians had been killed.

Ten Russian peacekeepers were killed and 30 wounded when their barracks were hit in Georgian shelling, said Russian Ground Forces spokesman Col. Igor Konashenkov. Russia has soldiers in South Ossetia as peacekeeping forces but Georgia alleges they back the separatists.

Georgia, which borders the Black Sea between Turkey and Russia, was ruled by Moscow for most of the two centuries preceding the breakup of the Soviet Union. Georgia, a staunch U.S. ally, has angered Russia by seeking NATO membership — a bid Moscow regards as part of a western effort to weaken its influence in the region.

Speaking earlier on Georgian television, Saakashvili accused Russia of sending aircraft to bomb Georgian territory, which Russia denied.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said it was sending reinforcements for its peacekeepers, and Russian state television and Georgian officials reported a convoy of tanks had crossed the border. The convoy was expected to reach the provincial capital, Tskhinvali, by evening, Channel One television said.

“We are facing Russian aggression,” said Georgia’s Security Council chief Kakha Lomaya. “They have sent in their troops and weapons and they are bombing our towns.”

Putin has warned that the Georgian attack will draw retaliation and the Defense Ministry pledged to protect South Ossetians, most of whom have Russian citizenship.

Chairing a session of his Security Council in the Kremlin, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev also vowed that Moscow will protect Russian citizens.

“In accordance with the constitution and federal law, I, as president of Russia, am obliged to protect lives and dignity of Russian citizens wherever they are located,” Medvedev said, according to Russian news reports. “We won’t allow the death of our compatriots go unpunished.”

An AP reporter saw tanks and other heavy weapons concentrating on the Russian side of the border with South Ossetia — supporting the Russian TV reports of an incursion. Some villagers were fleeing into Russia.

“I saw [the Georgians] shelling my village,” said Maria, who gave only her first name. She said she and other villagers spent the night in a field and then fled toward the Russian border as the fighting escalated.

Yakobashvili said Georgian forces have shot down four Russian combat planes over Georgian territory. He gave no details. Russia’s Defense Ministry denied an earlier Georgia report about one Russian plane downed and has had no immediate comment on the latest claim.

South Ossetia officials said Georgia attacked with aircraft, armor and heavy artillery. Georgian troops fired missiles at Tskhinvali, an official said, and many buildings were on fire.

Georgia’s president said Russian aircraft bombed several Georgian villages and other civilian facilities.

“A full-scale aggression has been launched against Georgia,” Saakashvili said in a televised statement. He also announced a full military mobilization with reservists being called into action.

A senior Russian diplomat in charge of the South Ossetian conflict, Yuri Popov, dismissed the Georgian claims of Russian bombings as misinformation, the RIA-Novosti news agency reported.

Russia’s Defense Ministry denounced the Georgian attack as a “dirty adventure.” “Blood shed in South Ossetia will weigh on their conscience,” the ministry said in a statement posted on its Web site.

Saakashvili long has pledged to restore Tbilisi’s rule over South Ossetia and another breakaway province, Abkhazia. Both regions have run their own affairs without international recognition since splitting from Georgia in the early 1990s and built up ties with Moscow.

Relations between Georgia and Russia worsened notably this year as Georgia pushed to join NATO and Russia dispatched additional peacekeeper forces to Abkhazia.

The Georgian attack came just hours after Saakashvili announced a unilateral cease-fire in a television broadcast late Thursday in which he also urged South Ossetian separatist leaders to enter talks on resolving the conflict.

Georgian officials later blamed South Ossetian separatists for thwarting the cease-fire by shelling Georgian villages in the area.

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