New Cold War Doesn't Faze Russian Leader

Medvedev Recognizes Georgian Breakaway Provinces; U.S. Slams Move As "Irresponsible"

(CBS/AP)  Russia stunned the West on Tuesday by recognizing the independence claims of two Georgian breakaway regions, and U.S. warships plied the waters off of Georgia in a gambit the Kremlin saw as gunboat diplomacy.

The announcement by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev ignored the strong opposition of Europe and the United States, and signaled the Kremlin's determination to shape its neighbors' destinies even at the risk of closing its doors to the West.

"We are not afraid of anything, including the prospect of a Cold War," President Dmitry Medvedev said hours after announcing the Kremlin's decision and one day after Parliament had supported the recognition.

While the risk of a military clash with the West seemed remote, the lack of high-level public diplomacy between the White House and the Kremlin added to an uneasy sense here at least of an escalating crisis.

Medvedev also promised a Russian military response to a U.S. missile defense system in Europe. Washington says the system would counter threats from Iran and North Korea, but Russia says it is aimed at blunting Russian nuclear capability.

The Kremlin's recognition of the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia suggested it was willing to risk nearly two decades of economic, political and diplomatic bonds with its Cold War antagonists.

Medvedev's grim announcement, carried on national television, inspired jubilation on the streets of the rebel capitals. In the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali, a parade of cars bearing the South Ossetian and Russian flags blared their horns, women cried for joy and gunmen fired their weapons in the air.

The United States, surprised by the speed of the Russian response, threatened a veto in the U.N. Security Council should Russia ask for international recognition for the territories.

"Abkhazia and South Ossetia are a part of the internationally recognized borders of Georgia and it's going to remain so," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said. President Bush called the Russian move "irresponsible."

Germany and France also criticized the decision, while the British Foreign Office said it did "nothing to improve the prospects of peace in the Caucasus."

The Kremlin insists, despite some doubts in the West, that its invasion of Georgia was a spur-of-the-moment response to the Georgian military's surprise crackdown on South Ossetia.

By contrast, Moscow has had weeks to weigh the consequences of recognizing the breakaway regions.

As the West focused on Russia's effort to shift Georgia's internationally recognized borders, the Kremlin denounced the U.S. use of a Navy destroyer and Coast Guard cutter named the Dallas to deliver aid to Georgia's Black Sea coast.

"Normally battleships do not deliver aid," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov dryly told reporters in English, apparently confusing the word "warship" with "battleship."

Earlier Tuesday, the United States said it intends to deliver humanitarian aid by ship on Wednesday to the beleaguered Georgian port city of Poti, which Russian troops still control through checkpoints on the city's outskirts.

The Kremlin said it accepted the independence claims because the Georgian military assault amounted to "genocide."

But beyond a handful of resolute U.S. foes, such as Cuba and Venezuela, few other nations seem likely to follow the Kremlin's lead.

And the declaration seems to have little practical impact on the lives of people living in the separatist regions, who have lived for years under Russia's economic, political and military umbrella.

Still, the Kremlin recognition marked an initial step toward what could become a push for territorial expansion. Many South Ossetians have expressed a desire for integration into Russia.

Russian U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin later downplayed any resurgence of a Cold War, though he acknowledged a period of difficult relations with the West were in store.

"I want to remind you that Cold War was a completely different beast when we were really at each other's throats in a big way internationally, and this is not going to happen under any circumstances," he said at the U.N. in New York.

Churkin also said Georgia's attack on South Ossetia negated U.N. resolutions guaranteeing Georgian territorial integrity. Churkin said the military actions of Georgia's president created a "new reality" both for South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

The Kremlin's rush to recognize the two regions took Western nations by surprise. Moscow made the move with barely a breather, or dialogue with the West, after the brief war and Russia's pullback from military positions in Georgia late last week.

Medvedev told his nation Georgia had forced Russia's hand.

"Saakashvili chose genocide to fulfill his political plans," Medvedev said. "Georgia chose the least human way to achieve its goal - to absorb South Ossetia by eliminating a whole nation."

Russia's action is likely to send political tremors through Georgia, a Western ally in the Caucasus region, a major transit corridor for energy supplies to Europe and a strategic crossroads close to the Middle East, Iran, Afghanistan and energy-rich Central Asia.

Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, a fervent ally of the West, has staked his political career on restoring Georgian sovereignty over its breakaway regions. Georgia's humiliating defeat in its short war with Russia this month could shape the country's politics for years to come.

Georgia's state minister on reintegration, Timur Yakobashvili, told The Associated Press Medvedev's announcement had "no legal status."

Lavrov said recognition was "absolutely unavoidable" for Russia. "Short of losing our dignity as a nation, we couldn't act otherwise," he said.

Alexander Konovalov, president of Moscow's Institute of Strategic Assessment, said that while Medvedev's action was perhaps unavoidable, it was also the result of a chain of missteps by all sides.

He said Saakashvili bore the blame for the devastating attack on Tskhinvali, which triggered the Russian invasion of the small former Soviet republic. "But Russian leaders are guilty too because they kept this conflict warm for many years and tried to use it as a political instrument," he said.

All of the consequences of recognition were not immediately clear, but in the short term Medvedev's announcement seemed to deepen Moscow's isolation.

"This is burning at least one very important bridge," said Masha Lipman, a Russia expert with the Carnegie Moscow Center think tank.

Russian existing membership in the G-8 group of industrial nations may be threatened, as well as its bid for membership in the World Trade Organization.

There are also fears the crisis could spill over into the collaboration between Washington and Moscow on nuclear non-proliferation and cooperation in battling terrorism.

Several experts said the declaration limits Russia's room for diplomatic maneuvering.

It undermines the Kremlin's long-standing criticism of the U.S. for acting unilaterally, and it appears to weaken Moscow's rationale for opposing the independence of Kosovo, which formally broke with Serbia in February.

More dangerously, perhaps, recognition for rebel governments in Abkhazia and South Ossetia appears to undercut Russia's rejection, on the grounds of territorial integrity, of the independence claims by separatists in its own turbulent North Caucasus.

Russia will likely argue that South Ossetia and Abkhazia are special cases and that it still regards territorial integrity as crucial principle - an argument unlikely to convince separatists in the North Caucasus.

[cfin5]

Who cares what Russia thinks? All that military gear is worthless when a bunch of drunks are in charge. The old saying that "God invented whiskey to keep the Irish from ruling the world" goes double for Russians and their vodka.

[tbweb]

"Normally battleships do not deliver aid," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov dryly told reporters in English, apparently confusing the word "warship" with "battleship."

In my view even the term `warship` was wrong, the ship was a U.S. Coast Guard vessel whose mission is normally related to rescue and life saving functions. Yes Coast Guard ships are armed, but not armed the way a normal American warship is armed. The Russian Navy would not take a lone Coast Guard vessel as a serious threat! Russia overreacted to Georgia`s intervention and exaggerates the threat of a lone U.S. Coast Guard ship!

[mnbrant]

My wife is Filipina. I fully support the Russian mail order bride industry. I got a really cool pic from a young blond woman wearing a black leather trench coat and carrying either an automatic or semi-automatic rifle. She was an office manager. I wonder if she used it on her employees when they got out of line? Russians are tough.

[oneworldusa]

This calls for a boycott of the mail-order-bride industry.

[mnbrant]

Don''t forget America is a Democracy, Republic or, whatever, Viet Nam almost sunk us; Just like Afganistan almost caused Russia to collapse. Now we are in Afganistan and losing there. It''s almost like a bad dream that you can''t wake from. My tip to Republicans for their theme to the RNC. "Build more bunkers for America not roads."

[tbweb]

Our economy is still way stronger then Russia,but a lot of our money is going to China where their economy is booming.China is still a communist country.Now that the Olympics are over,I expect China to now get involved in all of this.

Posted by NSKDuke2 at 12:10 AM : Aug 27, 2008,,,

China may be Russia`s ally but China is angry with Russia for invading Georgia during the China sponsored Olympics! China even pointed out to Russia that the Olympics were a symbol of international peace and unity but Russia ignored China and continued to invade Georgia anyway. Russia and China air their grievances behind the scenes out of the public spotlight but all is not rosy between Russia and China despite appearances and the influx of illegal Chinese into the Russian Far East is straining relations even more. I look for China to remain neutral in this matter as a result.

[nskduke2]

Our economy is still way stronger then Russia,but a lot of our money is going to China where their economy is booming.China is still a communist country.Now that the Olympics are over,I expect China to now get involved in all of this.

[toldyouso12]

We have killed nearly 100,000 innocent people in our effort to provide the Iraqi people the same democratic rights the Russian people in the breakaway regions would now be denied. This makes no sense, and that would indicate to me that George W. Bush and his GOP buddies must play some part in this matter.

Posted by timothyone at 11:58 PM : Aug 26, 2008


We passed the 100 thousand mark in dead civilians in Iraq, years ago. Even the military has reverted to saying we do not count dead civilians--but they do have an official tally, with rules so strict that most are not counted(if no id papers are provided--they are not counted, if they die from wounds later --they are not counted, those in mass graves are not counted, those who are not taken to the official morgue or hospital are not counted, those who die of diseases or from bad sanitation or any whose wounds do not indicate which group killed them are not counted. In Newsweek in 2004, there was a long list that our government gave--for all the people who could NOT be counted. Which was why the Int list was over 600K by 2005 and Bush''s count was about 30K and remained so until late in 2006.

[toldyouso12]

he Cold War took a toll on Russia''''s economy.Russia''''s economy is still bad.Russia restarting the Cold War isn''''t going to help their economy.

Posted by NSKDuke2 at 11:42 PM : Aug 26, 2008


Sort of like the tolls our own wars are presently taking on our economy? (at 300 to 500 million per day). FAce it, I seriously doubt either country is taking a strong look at or connecting the dots or even caring about their domestic economy--both Bush and Putin are still trying to prove which one has the biggest, mustiest, heaviest, wrinkliest, ballz.

[timothyone-2009]

If the majority of people in these regions want to break away from Georgia, as is obvious, the decision should be their democratic right. Why not allow them the same freedoms and democratic right to self-determination that we want so badly for the Iraqi people? We have killed nearly 100,000 innocent people in our effort to provide the Iraqi people the same democratic rights the Russian people in the breakaway regions would now be denied. This makes no sense, and that would indicate to me that George W. Bush and his GOP buddies must play some part in this matter.