TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Bush: Breakaway States Belong In Georgia

ADVERTISEMENT

The Associated Press

Published: August 26, 2008

CRAWFORD, Texas - President Bush appealed to Russia's president Monday to ignore the advice of lawmakers and refrain from recognizing Georgia's breakaway regions as independent.

The move came as the White House announced Vice President Dick Cheney would visit Georgia, a blast of support for an ally still reeling from its brief war with Russia.

Bush's intervention reflected the deep stakes for Georgia, which is a former Soviet republic, and the broader U.S.-Russia relationship, as the fate of separatist Abkhazia and South Ossetia remained in flux.

Both houses of the Russian parliament voted unanimously to urge Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to recognize the two regions as independent. Medvedev did not respond, but has said Moscow would support the choice of the people of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

"I call on Russia's leadership to meet its commitments and not recognize these separatist regions," Bush said in a statement from Texas, where he is vacationing at his ranch.

"Georgia's territorial integrity and borders must command the same respect as every other nation's, including Russia's," the president said.

Cheney is heading abroad Sept. 2 for stops in three former Soviet Republics - Azerbaijan, Georgia and Ukraine. He will also visit Italy.

"The vice president will be delivering the word of America's support," White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.

The Russian forces pulled back last week in what Moscow claims is fulfillment of a European Union-brokered cease-fire. However, Georgia and its Western allies say Russia has violated the cease-fire's call to pull back to prewar positions because it has set up posts adjacent to South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

Georgian Security Council head Alexander Lomaia said Monday that Russia has set up at least 14 positions in the security zones, apparently manned by hundreds of troops. Although Georgia bitterly opposes the security zones, the country's small military is unlikely to be able to push out the Russian soldiers. Russia's armed forces quickly overwhelmed Georgia's, and Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili has been accused of starting a war that Georgia had no hope of winning.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT