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Russia Still Active in Georgian WarMoscow Tightens its Grip on America's Georgian AllyDespite a cease-fire brokered by President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, Russia is consolidating its position within Georgia.
After promising for days that it would begin to withdraw its military forces from Georgia, Russia appears to have taken the first steps toward implementing a French-sponsored cease-fire with Tbilisi. Still Flexing Russian MuscleThe Russian government has announced that it will begin withdrawing troops from Georgia around August 22, but has used the time since signing a peace deal to entrench itself in key positions and to continue some military actions. Television footage from the past two days has shown Georgian prisoners blindfolded and bound by Russian troops, and Russian possession of several Humvee vehicles belonging to the United States. The U.S. vehicles were reportedly awaiting shipment out of Georgia following joint U.S. and Georgian military exercises conducted recently. NATO in FluxMeanwhile, member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, to which Georgia has been trying to gain membership, were divided and unsure what to do in response to Russia’s movement of troops into Georgia proper. The defense alliance would have found itself in quite a predicament if Georgia had already been admitted to NATO, which has a collective defense clause that cites an attack on one member nation as an attack on all NATO member states. Token Russia Troop MovementsIn response to western demands and in accordance with the cease-fire agreement, some Russian forces have in fact begun to move back toward their pre-conflict positions. Some Russian troops were reported to have departed from the Georgian city of Gori, although other reports indicated that Russia still controlled the Port of Poti and an undetermined number of Georgian military bases. Other Regional ConcernsRussian aggression in Georgia has sparked other regional concerns as well. Another Georgian breakaway republic, Abkhazia, has also sought independence from Georgia or unification with Russia, just like South Ossetia, the disputed province that sparked the recent conflict. Additionally, European and American officials have been concerned about possible future conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The Ukrainian government has become increasingly pro-western since the collapse of the Soviet Union and Ukraine has, like Georgia, jockeyed for membership in NATO. Membership in the western defense alliance for both Georgia and Ukraine has been staunchly opposed by Moscow, which sees western overtures toward the two countries as an encroachment on its traditional sphere of influence. Russia is also opposed to NATO moves in Eastern Europe, once part of the Soviet empire, and to the basing of U.S. missile defense systems in Poland and the Czech Republic.
The copyright of the article Russia Still Active in Georgian War in International Affairs is owned by Greg Reeson. Permission to republish Russia Still Active in Georgian War in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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