[Ynet News] Sever Plocker - The general perception is that Moscow won in Georgia, big time. In my view, however, Russia did not win in Georgia. When a superpower needs to utilize brutal military force in order to punish a rebellious tiny neighbor, it does not prove its power - in fact, it proves its weakness. By invading Georgia, Russia proved that it does not even have the power to deter a tiny country from provoking it. Those who think that Russia's neighbors were scared by the sight of 50 airplanes and 100 tanks pushing the Georgian army out of south Ossetia and Abkhazia are wrong. "Conquering" Ossetia is not the same as conquering Ukraine. Russia's military victory is even less convincing. The Georgian troops were sent to Ossetia to suppress the region's autonomic aspirations. The troops were sent on a blatant imperial mission, which they did not feel any sympathy with. It is no wonder they fled. The Russian army entered those areas while facing little resistance, but this does not attest to its fighting abilities. Officials at the Kremlin realized this full well, and were quick to end the fighting before Georgia prepared to truly defend itself. The pressure to end the fighting came first and foremost from the Russian army itself. The limited enthusiasm displayed by Russian newscasters and commentators was surprising. Russia's citizens wondered what their troops were doing there, at the cursed Caucasus, and feared escalation that would lead to yet another Chechnya war. Moreover, it is virtually impossible to provoke anti-Georgian sentiments in Russia. Both peoples are very close. Josef Stalin, one of Russia's most admired historical heroes, was Georgian.
2008-08-15 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive