US steps up pressure but rules out the use of force
Russian soldiers make for a menacing presence on a tank in the Georgian city of Gori, near South Ossetia yesterday where tensions still ran high
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Russia positioned itself yesterday as the unequivocal victor in its war with Georgia, with its foreign minister stating that the world could "forget about" Georgian control of two separatist enclaves.
The Kremlin and the Bush administration stepped up the rhetoric as US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, stopped in France to meet Nicolas Sarkozy. The French president brokered a ceasefire between Russia and Georgia earlier in the week.
Speaking after President George Bush insisted on the respect of Georgian territorial integrity, Sergei Lavrov, Russia's Foreign Minister, rejected any such talk. President Dmitry Medvedev drove home the message by meeting in the Kremlin with the two separatist leaders of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
Robert Gates, the US Defence Secretary, said: "If Russia does not step back from its aggressive posture and actions in Georgia, the US-Russian relationship could be adversely affected for years to come."
As Russian troops slowly withdrew from deep inside the former Soviet republic, there were reports that they were destroying airfields and military installations as they went, further crippling the Georgian army, which, despite US training, has been battered and demoralised.
Fears were growing yesterday that the French-brokered peace plan was unravelling because of vague language that allowed Russian forces to take care of "additional security measures" in Georgia.
French and British diplomats have begun work on a draft resolution to put the plan before the United Nations Security Council.Meanwhile, two planes of humanitarian aid from the United States arrived in Tbilisi yesterday in a symbolic gesture meant to show American support for Georgia. In reality, Washington has done everything possible to avoid getting involved in the conflict and the claim by the Georgian President, Mikheil Saakashvili, that the American mission to Georgia would involve defending the country's ports and airports was swiftly shot down by American officials.
Mr Gates acknowledged that Washington would not use military force in Georgia. Most analysts doubt that the Russians ever had plans to launch a land assault on the Georgian capital, but according to those close to the Georgian government, there was a genuine belief in Tbilisi that a full-scale invasion was planned.
"When Bush made his speech promising humanitarian aid, everybody started whooping, cheering, high-fiving," said one government adviser, who had been at the country's National Security Council at the time. "One guy even got out a bottle of whisky. They realised that this would really spook the Russians."
In Moscow, Russian politicians and analysts were furious about what they saw as hypocrisy from the West.
"How can newspapers and diplomats say it's unfair to pursue strategic goals using force?
Have you all forgotten about Iraq?" asked Sergei Markedonov, a Moscow-based analyst of the Caucasus. (©) Independent News Service)
- Shaun Walker in Tbilisi
