Georgia has been in the news. Small countries or regions get into the news only when big countries get involved. So, Yo Ho Georgia, you got Lucky.
Russia is back on the world stage as the monster that the Western world’s politicians and novelists love it to be. This Red Russia Rising mentality might even resurrect the careers of international spy and thriller writers like ummm.. Tom Clancy.
This blog’s views on the whole situation can be summed up in Rajiv’s views expressed on the online comments pages of The New York Times. He was writing in response to this typical whiny tone about Russia’s role in Georgia:”Russia Blames the Victim”.
Rajiv’s comments to this article are as follow (Copy pasted from THIS LINK, Comment No. 30):
”Sorry, I’ve got to disagree with this opinion piece. ALL of Western media are blindly siding with Georgia and vilifying Russia. Even a local newspaper in New Zealand has published a random letter (New Zealanders are not well known for their interest in global politics and are better known for their neutrality and blissful ignorance) from someone expressing his outrage (surely generated by Western media coverage of this conflict) at Russian aggression against Georgia. Needless to say it made me laugh both because of its naiveness and ignorance.
Even generally left wing and objective BBC is strongly prejudiced against Russia.
In this conflict Russians are no saints but they have certainly been given too many reasons in the last 20 years or so to go mad like this. After the break up of Soviet Union the West has treated Russia with nothing but contempt and mockery. Even as this was not enough, United States and NATO have been- unnecessarily- pursuing the policy of military adventurism against already beleaguered Russia: from surrounding Russia with NATO allies to installing missile defense shields around its border.
Russia is the only country in the world that speaks out on strong discrimination against Russian ethnic minorities in the new countries that emerged after the break up of Soviet Union. The West grossly underestimated Russian nationalism and sense of pride. Russia was written off as a stinking and ailing third world country that only had nuclear bombs, weapons and military to speak of.
But last decade has taken Western world by surprise. Russia has been resurgent because of two factors: it’s Petroleum and Natural gas wealth and its ambitious nationalism. For better or worse Europe and the West will always have to deal with this huge country that has global strategic interests because of its history, geography and very strong national identity.
Russia has seen Western contempt and Western military ganging up against it in the last 10 years or so. Russia has also been snubbed when it tried to speak for its Slavic neighbors in Eastern Europe. Kosovo was made into a free country without much regard for Russian objections. Now, Western intervention and encroachment seems (from Russian point of view) to be targeted at Russia itself. Can you blame this proud nation for acting mad when tiny Georgia in its backyard taunts Russia because it thinks it is buds with Western Europe, UK and USA?
Abkhazia and South Ossetia have wanted independence for long like Kosovo. Citizens in these two regions have faced aggression and human rights violations by Georgian police and military. Russian military action was imminent and has been in the making for a long time.
Georgia itself remains a corrupt country and away from its capital Tbilisi Georgians live in dilapidated conditions. Rather than playing these stupid and dangerous geopolitical games Georgia must pursue peace and reconciliation with its own neighbors. Georgia should also stop bullying South Ossetia/Abkhazia regions and respect their autonomy.”
— Rajiv, New Zealand
It was great to see that lots of people agree with this statement. Russsia and the Western world should behave like mature world powers and not like some other immature and tribalistic countries that cannot solve their problems or conflicts no matter what. I just hope for mutual respect and friendship between Russia and the West. Both of these powers can work together to solve so many of this world’s problems, terrorism threats, dangerous conflict zones (Koreas, Middle East, Afghanistan, Iran, India-Kashmir-Pakistan etc.).
