U.S., Europe Ponder Russia's Punishment

Joint NATO-Russia Navy Exercise Cancelled; President Bush Boycotts Meeting

(CBS/AP)  Scrambling to find ways to punish Russia for its invasion of pro-Western Georgia, the United States and its allies are considering expelling Moscow from an exclusive club of wealthy nations and have scrapped plans for an upcoming joint NATO-Russia military exercise, Bush administration officials said Tuesday.

But with scant leverage in the face of an emboldened Moscow, Washington and its friends have been forced to face the uncomfortable reality that their options are limited to mainly symbolic measures, such as boycotting Russian-hosted meetings and events, that may have little or no long-term impact on Russia's behavior, the officials said.

"The U.S. is a country that needs to stand by a loyal ally," Charles Kupchan of the Council on Foreign Relations told CBS News. "On the other hand, it cannot risk military engagement because the stakes would be too high of a confrontation with Russia."

With the situation on the ground still unclear after Russian President Dmitri Medvedev on Tuesday ordered a halt to military action in Georgia, U.S. officials were focused primarily on confirming a cease-fire and attending to Georgia's urgent humanitarian needs following five days of fierce fighting, including Russian attacks on civilian targets.

"It is very important now that all parties cease fire," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said. "The Georgians have agreed to a cease-fire, the Russians need to stop their military operations as they have apparently said that they will, but those military operations really do now need to stop because calm needs to be restored."

At the same time, however, President George W. Bush and his top aides were engaged in frantic consultations with European and other nations over how best to demonstrate their fierce condemnations of the Russian operation that began in Georgia's separatist region of South Ossetia, expanded to another disputed area, Abkhazia, and ended up on purely Georgian soil.

"The idea is to show the Russians that it is no longer business as usual," said one senior official familiar with the consultations among world leaders that were going on primarily by phone and in person at NATO headquarters in Brussels, where alliance diplomats met together and then with representatives of Georgia.

A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to describe confidential conversations among the leaders of other nations, said European and other leaders have been blunt with Russia that it must withdraw its forces. Russian leaders have said they do not plan a long-term occupation, the official said. The official was not specific about whether Russia has offered a timeline for withdrawal.

"People are saying, 'You know you cannot stay,"' the official said. "We have been hearing from Russia, 'We don't want to stay."'

For now, the Bush administration decided to boycott a third meeting at NATO on Tuesday at which the alliance's governing board, the North Atlantic Council, was preparing for a meeting with a Russian delegation that has been called at Moscow's request, officials said.

In addition, a senior defense official said the U.S. has decided to dump a major NATO naval exercise with Russia that was scheduled to begin Friday.

Sailors and vessels from Britain, France, Russia, and the U.S. were to take part in the annual Russia-NATO exercise aimed at improving cooperation in maritime security. But the official said there is no way that the U.S. could proceed with it in the midst of the Georgian crisis.

The naval exercise began a decade ago and typically involves around 1,000 personnel from the four countries, officials said. The Pentagon also is looking at a variety of ways it could respond to humanitarian needs in Georgia, but officials have not yet made any final decisions.

In the medium term, the United States and its partners in the Group of Seven, or G-7, the club of the world's leading industrialized nations that also includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan, are debating whether to effectively disband what is known as the G-8, which incorporates Russia, by throwing Moscow out, the officials said.

Discussions are also taking place on whether to revoke or review the May 2007 invitation to Russia to join the 30-member, Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which consists primarily of established European democracies, the officials said.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because no decisions have yet been made and consultations with other countries involved are still under way.

Bush spoke on Monday and Tuesday with fellow G-7 leaders as well as the heads of democratically elected pro-Western governments in formerly Eastern bloc nations, some of which are among NATO's newest members and have urged a strong response to Russia's invasion of a like-minded country.

On Monday on his way home from the Olympics in China, Bush talked with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus and Polish President Lech Kaczynski. He then called Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, the White House said. On Tuesday, he spoke with Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Rice, who returned early to Washington late Monday from vacation to deal with the crisis, held a second round of talks with foreign ministers from the Group of Seven countries in which they were briefed on European Union mediation efforts led by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who met Tuesday with Medvedev in Moscow.

"They believe that they have made some progress and we welcome that and we certainly welcome the EU mediation," Rice told reporters at the White House.

Later, Saakashvili told reporters that he accepted the cease-fire plan negotiated by Sarkozy.

Despite the flurry of activity, there was still uncertainty about whether Russia had in fact halted its military action in Georgia, with reports of continued shelling of civilian and military sites.

The State Department on Tuesday recommended that all U.S. citizens leave Georgia in a new travel warning, saying the security situation remained uncertain. It said it was organizing a third evacuation convoy to take Americans who want to leave by road to neighboring Armenia. More that 170 American citizens have already left Georgia in two earlier convoys.

Just hours after Bush said in a White House address that the invasion had "substantially damaged Russia's standing in the world" and demanded an end to what he called Moscow's "dramatic and brutal escalation" of violence, Medvedev said he had ordered an end to military action.

Russia said its military assault was ending because its mission has been accomplished, reports CBS News correspondent Richard Roth. But Medvedev said the Kremlin's army isn't pulling out, accusing the Georgian leader of starting the war, even calling him a lunatic.

[ourtomorrows]

george bush critisizes russia for a "disproportionate" response to an attack on its own soil. yet only 5 years ago promised "shock and awe" for the responce to 9/11 to a country that had nothing to do with 9/11.

they guy has even less credibillity then can be immagined

Posted by liberalameri

Hi

Here is something we like to call in the real world a fact. Russia was not attacked by Georgia. Georgia moved to try and bring South Ossetia back under broader control of the Georgian central govt. South Ossetia is legally a province IN GEORGIA. Georgia did NOT attack Russia in any way.

[wogerwabbit]

Bush and the neocons have to be living in an alternative universe. Punish the Russian for defending themselves... I''m stunned.

Josef Goebbles must be dancing a jig over this triumph of propaganda genius.

[smurfcrusher]

"Punish the Russian for defending themselves... I''''m stunned."

So was I, when I heard you thought Russia was attacked.

What universe do you live in?

[ourtomorrows]

Bush and the neocons have to be living in an alternative universe. Punish the Russian for defending themselves... I''''m stunned.

Posted by WogerWabbit

What are you talking about! Russia was not attacked, not Georgian solider or tank moved onto Russian soil. South Ossetia is a semi-autonomous province in GEORGIA. The majority of the people living there are ethnically of Iranian/Persian decent. Russia gave them passports in part of the Russian govts efforts to woo them to Moscow, but, the fact remains, South Ossetia is legally part of Georgia. Russia was not in anyway, shape or form attacked.

[paulharrison-2009]

OK let''s play their game, Russia and China are doing deals with Iran outside of sanctions, I say give Israel the green light to bomb the nuclear facilities and see what they say, and as a side note, bomb any Russian and Chinese industries in Iran. Two can play at this game.

[zykracosmos]

"...give Israel the green light to bomb the nuclear facilities and see what they say, and as a side note, bomb any Russian and Chinese industries in Iran..."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by paulharrison at 10:42 PM : Aug 12, 2008
----------------------------

YOUR A PHUKIN LUNATIC!

[bozworth4]

For now, the Bush administration decided to boycott a third meeting at NATO on Tuesday at which the alliance''s governing board, the North Atlantic Council, was preparing for a meeting with a Russian delegation that has been called at Moscow''s request, officials said.

In addition, a senior defense official said the U.S. has decided to dump a major NATO naval exercise with Russia that was scheduled to begin Friday.

Sailors and vessels from Britain, France, Russia, and the U.S. were to take part in the annual Russia-NATO exercise aimed at improving cooperation in maritime security. But the official said there is no way that the U.S. could proceed with it in the midst of the Georgian crisis.

Bet this will break the russians hearts. That will teach them a lesson. Looks like they already had their training exercize.

[zykracosmos]

Georgia did NOT attack Russia in any way.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by ourtomorrows at 10:34 PM : Aug 12, 2008
-------------------------

What a dumba$$. South Ossetians were never ethnically similar to Georgians and never wanted to be part of Georgia. They were PUT there by Stalin. They declared their independence from Georgia when the rest of the Soviet satellites declared their independence from the Soviet Union. Georgia slammed S. Ossetian civilians and peacekeepers with an unprovoked rocket attack that lasted through the night last Thursday, killing hundreds and sending thousands of refugees fleeing out of the capital city. Where do you think these "Georgians" as you call them fled- TO RUSSIA. That''s because 95% of them applied for and received Russian passports, even though Russia still recognizes S. Ossetia as an autonomous entity in within the boundaries of Georgia. Listen a$$hole- what would you expect the U.S. to do if they had peacekeepers (not their army, mind you) in a zone of conflict and one of the parties started shooting rockets at them all night long for no reason, and killed Russian peacekeepers, as well as citizens? You''re full of shiiit.

[zykracosmos]

Here''s the bottom line- you kill Russians, they''ll kill you back. And they''ll humiliate anyone left to make sure you learn the lesson. That''s what happened, and it is downright funny to see all these folks scurrying around talking about what meetings they''re going to cancel.

[tawpdawg111]

well...lets see..... we could nuke em!

But they might nuke us back.

We couldddddddddddddd.........make a no-fly zone!

But they might nuke us.

We coulddddddddddddd..........put boots on the ground!

But they might nuke us.

We could send a top level delegation in....Rice , Cheney, Bush!

If THEY get nuked it won''t matter.....They''re lame ducks!

And I DO mean lame.

[jtdev1]

George will do the only thing he knows how to do - a slap on the wrist and pat on the back....

heck-of-a-job Putin...

[patriot12436]

Who does the U.S. and Europe think they are to punish anyone ? Russia was dealing with an internal matter. It is not our business. What if China invaded Guam and we counter attacked, would Russia then say we should be punished ?

[timdgrim]

There should be punishment for nations that invade another soverign nation, or at least it''s leader should be punished. Let''s see...who did this before Russia did it....hmmmmmm....let...me....see....
Oh Yeah.....

[timdgrim]

That''s SOVEREIGN...me not know how spell right....

[guadalcanal3]

Punish Russia??????...For what?.....Georgia started the war...what about them?...They were the one''s who started shelling people.(when they ''mistakingly'' thought that the cat was away)

[bluestardad]

WHAT ABOUT BUSH CHENEY PUNISHMENT FOR IRAQ?

[shingles1]

''...attending to Georgia''s urgent humanitarian needs following five days of fierce fighting, including Russian attacks on civilian targets.''

CBS seems to have forgotten the Georgian attacks on civilian targets that started this whole thing.

It feels like we''re in some sort of bizarro world here, in which WE THE COMMENTATORS are doing the f*cking media''s job here, since they''re absolutely refusing to do it.

[pirmin3]

If Bushit wants to punish Russia he should appoint Kindasleazy as ambassador to Moscow. Hee hee hee

[patriot12436]

If we exiled bush and cheney to Russia would that be cruel and unusual punishment for the Russians ?

[patriot12436]

paul harrison
if we follow your plan then we won''t have to worry about Israel anymore, since it will only be a glowing light on our horizon.

[piercetheval]

...Who the heck are we to judge?

[ilyasib]

Punish Russia....sounds so funny! US would rather think how to avoid some Russian %u201Cnuke%u201D punishment in a near future. Bear%u2019s patience is about to be over Bush!

[deacon20081]

And Bush said of Putin, I looked into his eyes and saw his Soul,it looked just like mine...
Goes to show one evil eye knows another.

[andor3]

punish Russia? that IS funny...

[jgunther7]

Bush can''t punish Russia, didn''t anybody tell him. While Bushie was throwing a temper tantrum, Sarkozy and Medvedev got together like adults and settled a peace agreement, and they also agreed that Russia used an appropriate reaction to hostilities. If only we had an intelligent president like other countries.

[tbweb]

The U.S. is angry with Russia because of an unwritten agreement or rule not to mess with each others interest and this usually serves the interest of both parties. The U.S. didn`t invade Cuba or attack Iran out of consideration for Russian interest. Georgia is a U.S. ally and definitely a U.S. interest especially considering the fact that Georgia deployed 2000 of its troops along side the U.S. in Iraq and also has an interest in joining NATO. The U.S. is offended that Russia beat up on one of its interest and its scary to think the punishment the U.S. has in mind may be to return the favor!

[oneamerican_]

You poor soulless liberals %u2013 you%u2019re all still searching for some small shred of relevance in your pointless lives %u2013 and all you can seem to find is more seething rage about President Bush.

Keep searching %u2013 you%u2019ll find meaning and a purpose to your suffering someday.

Or maybe not.

By the way, you''ve just lost your War on America - what''ll you do next?

"We''re going to Miseryland!"

[oneamerican_]

You poor soulless liberals %u2013 you''re all still searching for some small shred of relevance in your pointless lives %u2013 and all you can seem to find is more seething rage about President Bush.

Keep searching %u2013 you''ll find meaning and a purpose to your suffering someday.

Or maybe not.

[oneamerican_]

You poor soulless liberals - you''re all still searching for some small shred of relevance in your pointless lives - and all you can seem to find is more seething rage about President Bush.

Keep searching - you''ll find meaning and a purpose to your suffering someday.

Or maybe not.

By the way, you''ve just lost your War on America - what''ll you do next?

"We''re going to Miseryland!"

[ajaxtheleast]

Not all bad.

Bush, Rice, Cheney boycotting meetings

will advance international diplomacy ten-fold.

[sistatee-2009]

I hopes Russia takes France, so I can watch all those little white flags come out waving. The French do that really well.

[haoli25]

The punishment for Russia should be harsh. I suggest a ''strongly'' worded letter of outrage, a complete social snub, and not return their phone calls for a month or two.

[summarex]

My question is how are they going to tell the Russians that they are to be punished.

[ajaxtheleast]

Suckassvili''s belligerence at the signing

suggests that his Department Of

Better Ways And Means To Make Russia

Invade And Humiliate Georgia have already

submitted his next plan to him.

[neoconrcrazy]

"punish russia" - that''s a joke

russia turns a little valve and europe can start collecting firewood.

she turns another little valve and oil is at 300!

punish russia? why?

punish the fools that supported georgia in their "suicide attack" !!!

[neoconrcrazy]

"Just hours after Bush said in a White House address that the invasion had "substantially damaged Russia''s standing in the world"


and he should know something about lost standing...!

[ramos937]

Except for supporting the French President, we should stay completely out of the matter. Reprisals, sanctions, etc have to be put on the shelf until someone impartial looks into what started this thing.

I personally find it so refreshing and good that someone else took the lead here and was effective.
It proves that we do not have to stick our noses into every conflict that comes along and lead.

[majorhank]

Hey grgeng, I''ll be your huckleberry. Funny watching a liberal acting like a conservative.

[trrrorislamx]

FASCIST NAZI TERRORISLAM IS THE PROBLEM,,,

DEMONIC-RAT HUSSEIN IS NOT THE SOLUTION,,,

EXPOSE HUSSEIN
http://www.exposeobama.com/obamaislam.html

www.obamatruth.org

www.stop-obama.org

A Video Portrait Of Barack Hussein Obama
http://www.eyeblast.tv/public/video.aspx?RsrcID=2036

The Barack Obama Test
http://www.americanthinker.com/2007/02/the_barack_obama_test.html

Obama-Odinga-Rezko-Ayers-Auchi-Saddam Hussein
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIe4d9Nmg9k

Raila Odinga was also financially backed by Muammar al-Gaddafi. Raila Odinga is Obama''s cousin:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/717...

Why does Raila Odinga use Obama''s exact same campaign slogan: CHANGE....Vote for CHANGE: Look at his website:
http://www.raila07.com/


IMPEACH HUSSEIN NOW,,,

SIGN THE PETITION

Impeach, expel Barack Obama
http://obamaimpeachment.org

HUSSEIN IS NO COMMANDER IN CHIEF,,, lol

McCain Tops Obama in Commander-in-Chief Test; Stays Competitive on Iraq

Poll Finds 72 Percent of Americans Say McCain Would be Good Commander-in-Chief
http://abcnews.go.com/PollingUnit/Politics/Story?id=5370538&page=1

Obama: Commander-in-(mis)chief?
http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/imperium/2008/07/200872011345855233.html

[airboatboy]

Let''s see, can''t remember... I think someone invaded Grenada but I can''t remember the punishment... And I think someone might have invaded Iraq....

[trrrorislamx]

Posted by airboatboy at 04:51 AM : Aug 13, 2008

ummmmm cuba invaded grenada,,,

iraq invaded kuwait,,, iraq broke the ceasefire agreement,,,

[Renegade.Rivers]

George,***,and Condi better get a clue, the sleeping Bear has been awoke, and their attempt to surround Russia with nukes and troops will meet with disaster. The attempt by the neo-cons and the NWO revelers to render the Bear impotent will bring heartache and disaster to the region. Georgia''s attempt at pushing the Russians out of South Ossetia failed miserably.

For the corporate media to attempt to label Russia as the aggressor is laughable. Especially when the originally reports admitted that Georgia attacked the Russian peace keepers in South Ossetia. If any punishment is doled out, it should be doled out to George,***,and Condi for having troops in Georgia training, and encouraging them to attempt such a senseless attack.

[trrrorislamx]

WHY RUSSIA WENT INTO GEROGIA,,,

Tensions between Georgia and Russia were strained over the Pankisi Gorge, a lawless region of Georgia that Russia said had become a haven for Islamic militants and Chechen rebels.
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107564.html

GET SOME RUSKIES,,, GET SOME,,,

NEVER FORGET THE RAPES OF BESLAN GIRLS!

Terror at Beslan
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1316935651894423094

RAPES IN BESLAN: IN MUHAMMAD%u2019S FOOTSTEPS
http://www.chroniclesmagazine.org/News/Trifkovic04/NewsST091304.html

Forget Not the Children of Beslan
http://kenlydell.typepad.com/islamic_evil/forget_not_the_children_of_beslan/index.html

Religion of Peace??? More like a cult of death.
http://www.terrorists-suck.org/why_suck/beslan.html

Radical Islamists must be stopped:

comments on the Beslan child slaughter.
http://www.sullivan-county.com/immigration/list.htm

Rapes in Beslan: in Muhammed''s Footsteps
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1214617/posts

[Renegade.Rivers]

The taxonomy on this site is laughable when I can''t even post D-I-C-K which is the Vice President''s first name. Get a clue CBS, the real world awaits,

[mcvet-1]

ummmmm cuba invaded grenada,,,

iraq invaded kuwait,,, iraq broke the ceasefire agreement,,,

Posted by trrrorislamx at 05:06 AM : Aug 13, 2008

LOL Folks this is what happens when you drop out of school in the 6th grade!! LOL Now if you all remember the UN had INSPECTORS in Iraq when Bush LIED to us, saying he had the "Smoking Gun" PROVING they had WMD and he could NOT wait on those Inspectors to tell him what he already knew. HE sent our troops off into that desert to die over a "Smoking Gun" that freak KNEW never existed. I want a President who will NOT lie about a Smoking Gun. I want a President who will use our MOST precious asset ONLY as a LAST resort. Not one who will MAKE up excuses to kill them. SIEG HEIL McSlime

[mcvet-1]

Hey grgeng, I''''ll be your huckleberry. Funny watching a liberal acting like a conservative.

Posted by majorhank at 04:06 AM : Aug 13, 2008

IF you had successfully completed your basic education, especially in History, you''d KNOW that Conservatives TODAY are nothing but Yesterday''s LIBERALS! They couldn''t take the position of Yesterday''s Conservatives and get elected as a dog catcher!! Now lets stand and show the Reich we care!! SIEG HEIL McSlime

[jgunther7]

This has already been settled. Bush can''t punish Russia, didn''t anybody tell him. While Bushie was throwing a temper tantrum, Sarkozy and Medvedev got together like adults and settled a peace agreement, and they also agreed that Russia used an appropriate reaction to hostilities. If only we had an intelligent president like other countries.

[metsobitso]

So they are going to throw Russia out of the G8. Does that mean that Europe won%u2019t be buying Russian oil and gas?

How about Ford and GM? Outside their factories in China, those are the only Ford and GM units making money and carrying the rest of the companies. We have always known George Bush is a mental pigmy, but we should be very careful in this case. Bushie might think he can throw Russia out of his club, but that they can%u2019t throw him out of theirs.

What%u2019s Georgie boy going to do when he needs permission to cross Russian airspace to get to his airbase in Uzbekistan?

[nextgenman]

No kidding, what is Shrub gonna do? Wag his finger at Medvedev and Putin?

This has got to be the final embarrassment for the NeoCons. Everything they touch fails. Now their precious Georgia has been trashed.

They''re all loud-mouth "Shock and Awe!" until they come up against a real enemy and then Bush and Cheney and McLiverspot raise their skirts and run away crying like little girls.

[nextgenman]

"The U.S. is a country that needs to stand by a loyal ally," Charles Kupchan of the Council on Foreign Relations told CBS News. "On the other hand, it cannot risk military engagement because the stakes would be too high of a confrontation with Russia."
------------

Yeah, the "Shock and Awe!" screechers know that Russia is no defenseless Iraq and that going all loudmouth with Medvedev and Putin would mean pulling all the McShrub Lovers away from their Belgianweisers and Monday Night Football and into real American Casualties....and they wouldn''t just be able to send other people''s kids to die this time like they did in Iraq.