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August 09, 2008
U.S. Tells Russia To Pull Forces Out Of Georgia
Richard Holbruck discusses this on CNN
**** Just a correction I have to make. They announced last night that Bush and Putin DID talk before the Opening events at the Olympics. So perhaps this man did not know that before this video interview was done. --Wild Thing
U.S. tells Russia to pull forces out of Georgia
WASHINGTON (Reuters)
The United States told Russia on Friday to withdraw its forces from U.S. ally Georgia and stop its air attacks on the tiny Caucasus state following fighting in the breakaway region of South Ossetia.
"We call on Russia to cease attacks on Georgia by aircraft and missiles, respect Georgia's territorial integrity, and withdraw its ground combat forces from Georgian soil," U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in a statement.
Rice issued her statement as Georgia, a former Soviet state that now wants to join NATO, said it would declare martial law and battled to get control of the rebel enclave, which was fortified by Russian forces.
Georgia said Russian fighter jets bombed container tankers and a shipbuilding plant in the port of Poti, prompting Washington's sharpest rebuke of Russia since the crisis began.
"We deplore the Russian military action in Georgia, which is a violation of Georgian sovereignty and territorial integrity," U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad told reporters at a U.N. Security Council meeting in New York.
The State Department summoned the Charge d'Affaires at Russia's Embassy in Washington, Aleksander Darchiyev, to see Rice's deputy John Negroponte, who pressed Moscow to stop its military activities in Georgia.
"The deputy secretary said that we deplore today's Russian attacks by strategic bombers and missiles, which are threatening civilian lives," said State Department spokesman Robert Wood of Negroponte's meeting with the Russian diplomat.
"These attacks mark a dangerous and disproportionate escalation of tension," he added.
Both Rice and the White House urged an immediate cease-fire in South Ossetia, and U.S. officials said they would send an envoy to the region to help mediate.
As fighting raged in and around the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said Russia and Georgia were at war.
Rice said the United States was working with its European partners to launch international mediation, and "we urgently seek Russia's support of these efforts."
American military planners reviewed contingency plans for the possible evacuation of up to 3,000 U.S. citizens from Georgia, including about 130 defense personnel there to train Georgian military forces for duty in Iraq.
Wild Thing's comment.........
Russians will ignore America's wishes is my guess.
“Early Saturday, Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili said the Vaziani military base on the outskirts of the Georgian capital was bombed by warplanes during the night and that bombs fell in the area of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline. He also said two other Georgian military bases were hit and that warplanes bombed the Black Sea port city of Poti, which has a sizable oil shipment facility.
Utiashvili said there apparently were significant casualties and damage in the attacks, but that further details would not be known until the morning.”
Also, another site reported that 1200 US special ops forces were present at the Vaizani base for training exercises with Georgias forces...they arrived on TUESDAY. I hope they are ok, the base having come under Russian air attack. ALso, earlier sources mentioned as many as 1000 US Marines were previously in the country.
Georgia is the third biggest contributor of forces in Iraq, with 2500 there. They have been recalled to Georgia because of the emergency. They have been such a good allie to us.
Posted by Wild Thing at August 9, 2008 05:55 AM
Comments
Well, this is a tad scary. Flashbacks to the old days...
Russia has been coming back online through Putin's activities. People disappeared and murdered again. Flexing of muscles. We must stand with Geoargia ~ they are kick a$$ fighters too!
I did hear that our guys in Georgia were all accounted for yesterday. Can't remember which news source it was from tho.
Laughing Wolf over at Blackfive has a very informative (if unsettling) post up about this.
http://www.blackfive.net/main/2008/08/no-its-not-good.html
Has anyone heard from The Chosen One on this? I thought I was scared before at the thought of his being president but that fear just got ramped up a 1000%.
Posted by: yankeemom at August 9, 2008 09:40 AM
Well as usual there is no condemnation internationally for civilian deaths at
Russian hands, estimates are some 1500 dead from bombing apartment buildings. Neither will we hear a peep from the Annointed One, he like the rest of the left support anything the Communists do. It doesn't matter if or not that Putin and Bush talked, it has always been duplicity with the Russians. Seems that General Patton warned us of this back in December of '45.
Posted by: Jack at August 9, 2008 11:49 AM
I guess no more BBQ invites to Crawford for Vlad.
No one internationally will raise a hand to stop this Russian invasion of Georgia. Here goes the price of oil up again. America basically has no forces left to help Georgia. This is a perfect sceario for Russia right now.
This could give more credibility to McCains experience and military background. Obama will ramble about peace talks and international cooperation to stop this war. Maybe it will be a bit of a plus for McCain, but not much is done sanely in these 08 elections.
I hope the Georgians kick some Russian ass.
Posted by: TomR at August 9, 2008 12:22 PM
Yeah 1968 all over again, or 56'. Hell this might be a good place to see how well the M-1A1 holds up against the latest Russion Armour.
Posted by: Mark at August 9, 2008 12:39 PM
where is little Dickie Durbin condemning this as an atrocity... You mean to tell me Abu Ghrab was worse than the Russians bbombing apartment buildings...these phony SOBs
Posted by: Mark at August 9, 2008 04:19 PM
Yankeemom's link to Blackfive is very interesting.
It's a complicated move by the Russians, and is a poke in the eyes of the US.
You have to hope that this will awaken the pacifist worms in Europe from their slumber, but probably not. They periodically caved to the USSR, and Russia now controls a hunk of their energy supply.
Posted by: Rhod at August 9, 2008 06:33 PM
This is not good news and I wouldn't count on Europe or the UN to do anything useful to bring peace and stability to the region. I'm just wondering how long it will take for Barack Obama or his surrogates while he is on vacation to blame what happened in Georgia on George Bush. I'm guessing one of the TV talk shows on Sunday.
Posted by: Les at August 9, 2008 07:44 PM
Yankeemom, thank you for the link and information. Laughing Wolf is a good guy and a friend, I will check it out.
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 9, 2008 10:48 PM
Jack, yes I had forgoten that about Patton thank you.
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 9, 2008 10:52 PM
Tom, hahaha "I guess no more BBQ invites to Crawford for Vlad."...yes I guess those days will only be memories.
I agree, McCain has spoken out about Russia in the past, warning kind of statements so he will take the side of Georgia I am sure.
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 9, 2008 10:57 PM
Mark, I was offline most of today visiting relatives, but I haven't heard a word from ole Dickie Durbin about this.
Sunday morning they will probably have a lot of the Durbin ilk on TV discussing this.
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 9, 2008 11:01 PM
Rhod, yes they have given Russia a lot of control and also I read where Russia handed out passports like candy to a lot of the Georgians awhile back. Very weird stuff going on.
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 9, 2008 11:05 PM
Les, yes Sunday morning should be filled with discussions about this.
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 9, 2008 11:08 PM
Yankeemom, thanks again for the link. I just read it and he made some important and interesting remarks and takes on all of this.
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 9, 2008 11:15 PM
To Sherman, Armstrong, etc. whatever your name is since you decided to use several to try and get your comment posted. Listen up! When you are not on the approved list, I have to be physically here online to ok your comment and let it come through. Got that? Now as to your attack on me personally as to your comment not getting through you are taking the wrong tactic with me. You say you are a Veteran but your use of different names and information contradicts that. I know thousands of Veternas and they do not hide behind various phony email addresses when they want to make a comment or a point. You attacked every one on here that left a comment in this post as though no one has a brain about this except for you. I suggest you read up on history about Russia and Georgia before you take on those that commented that know a lot more about it then I do or certainly more then you do. Now go away because your comment will not get through and stop pretending to be a Veteran!!!!!!
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 10, 2008 12:32 AM
WT, we'll sic the new Georgia University Bulldog mascot 'UGA VII' (OOOGAAA) on both Vlad KGB Putin and Comrade Sherman Armstrong... Woof!
Posted by: darthcrUSAderworldtour07 at August 10, 2008 01:47 AM
Never forget the movie PATTON when George said round up the Germans and they'll fight with us since we'll have to fight the Russkies in the future... Hmmmmm? I admire the Cossacks because they don't have CNN tell their adversaries what their 'search and destroy' tactics are ahead of time. Sorry W but you did see Vlad's soul, even though the KGB types are atheists?
Posted by: The Ethics Cleanser 08 at August 10, 2008 02:00 AM
Darth and The Ethics Cleanser 08, thank you!!!
Posted by: Wild Thing at August 10, 2008 06:00 PM
