Those in the West who persist in blaming Georgia or the Bush administration for the present crisis ought to carefully consider those words -- and remember the history in Europe of regimes that have made similar claims. This is the rhetoric of an isolated, authoritarian government drunk with the euphoria of a perceived victory and nursing the delusion of a restored empire. It is convinced that the West is too weak and divided to respond with more than words. If nothing is done to restrain it, it will never release Georgia -- and it will not stop there.
And unwilling to just let their lies about their actions stand alone, Putin ups the ante by accusing America of starting the war!
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has accused the United States of orchestrating the Georgian crisis to benefit one of the presidential candidates, a claim the White House calls "patently false."
Face it people, the Russians have more territorial ambitions. The Georgians are suffering now but this is not about Georgia.
When the crisis cools off, we need to ship Georgia weapons to rebuild their military. In the short run, arms could not be used and could compel the Russians to restart the war, so we should be cautious here. But the ultimate goal must be to make Georgia too hard to conquer. Stop Russia in their tracks. And somehow get the Russians to support decent rulers who won't celebrate their paranoia and cruelty.
