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ottopilot · 08-28-2008, 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tisonlyi

Otto, seems you're conveniently leaving out the part where Georgia launches an artillery bombardment of South Ossetia, leaving it's capital 'in ruins' and indiscriminately killing over 1000 civilians and Russian peacekeepers - in South Ossetia under an international mandate agreed following civil war in 1992.

"After intense fighting" is deceptive.

Timeline: Conflict between Georgia and South Ossetia | International | Reuters

there are others out there, as I'm sure you know.

-Georgia knew - must have known, it was reported and publicised - there was a massive Russian build up and 'exercise' on the other side of the border.
-Georgia attacked South Ossetia.
-Russia kicked Georgia back out of South Ossetia as it was obliged to do under an international peacekeeping agreement.

Are there other power plays in here between NATO/The US/The EU? Certainly.

I'm at a loss as to why Georgia would ever have assaulted South Ossetia without some guarantees from NATO and The US. Saakashvili has alluded to as much during many of his interviews, wondering angrily where was his support from The West.

Russia isn't an angel, but neither is it a devil. Certainly not in this case.

Here is a recent account from Human Rights Watch disputing the thousand(s) killed by Georgia in South Ossetia. No one should have died, but it appears the count is in the dozens.

http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/etn/new...=news_hot_news

Quote:

'Dozens' not thousands killed in South Ossetia, says rights group

Agence France-Presse
Page 5
2008-08-19 01:07 AM

The number of civilians killed in fighting in South Ossetia amounts to "dozens" rather than thousands as claimed by Russian officials in initial estimates, a leading human rights group said yesterday.

"Our estimate does not confirm the official figure. We believe we are talking about dozens rather than thousands," a researcher for Human Rights Watch, Anna Neistat said.

"We have a rough estimate based on hospital figures and eyewitness testimony in the worst affected areas."

Neistat, senior emergencies researcher for the New-York based organization, said she had been in South Ossetia, mainly around the regional capital Tskhinvali where fighting was concentrated, for a week.

"We keep hearing official statements of several thousands dead and this is not serious and is irresponsible. It does not help to bring clarity to what happened there and bring justice to the victims," she said.

Russia said 1,600 were killed in South Ossetia after a Georgian attempt on August 7 to seize control of the province, which broke away from Tbilisi in the early 1990s.

South Ossetian separatist authorities have put the toll at more than 2,000.

Neistat said she had uncovered evidence of shelling and the use of missiles in Tskhinvali and surrounding villages by Georgian forces.

She had also visited four ethnic Georgian villages and said persecution of the population had taken place, with five villages set on fire. Other areas of South Ossetia remain off-limits because of restrictions by the Russian army, she said.

Russia and Georgia have accused each other of "ethnic cleansing" in the conflict..

Bottom-line... I think there's too much conflicting information from biased/unbiased credible/non credible sources. I tend to agree with your assessment that neither parties are "angels".