Putin Says `War Has Started' as Georgia Claims Russian Invasion

[tekisui]

Aug. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said ``war has started'' in the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia. Georgia accused Russia of ``a well-planned invasion'' and appealed to world leaders for mediation.

Russian ``volunteers'' are pouring over the border to help defend South Ossetia from Georgian forces, Putin told U.S. President George W. Bush in Beijing today, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in China.

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili accused Russia of ``full-blown military aggression'' after civilians died in aerial bombings and wide-spread fighting in and around the disputed region. The country of 4.6 million people is fighting ``to secure its borders,'' Saakashvili told Bloomberg Television.

link: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aAYTUBfOON84&refer=home

[tekisui]

1. Georgia announces three-hour ceasefire

Georgia says it will observe a three-hour ceasefire to allow civilians to leave South Ossetia's capital, Tskhinvali.

Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili said Georgian troops would observe the ceasefire beginning at 3pm local time (2100 AEST).

Tbilisi Mayor Gigi Ugulava told Georgian television: "We will cease fire from 3pm to 6pm and arrange a humanitarian corridor for civilians."

"We are offering amnesty for the separatist militants," he told Rustavi-2 television.

link: http://news.theage.com.au/world/georgia-announces-threehour-ceasefire-20080808-3s6a.html

[malaise]

41. BBC has good coverage n/t

[Solly Mack]

2. Thanks, tekisui

I've been catching what I can on the news here.

K/R

[tekisui]

4. The UN couldn't reach an agreement on how to deal with this

because the US, and the UK would not put the sentence in that called for both sides to renounce violence.

More war. It's the answer for everything.

[barbtries]

18. yeah that was my thought

old mcdonald started going through my head when i saw this: here a war, there a war, everywhere a war war...

interesting that if the US and the UK had not refused to renounce violence, this war may have been averted. i don't know that because i don't know enough about what has led to it. but i do know this: war sucks.

sigh.

[tekisui]

3. Georgian Official Reports Downing of 2 Russian Aircraft

Georgia claims it has shot down two Russian warplanes as violence escalates in the breakaway province of South Ossetia.

Russia has sent 150 tanks and armored vehicles into the territory as what started as a regional conflict between Georgia and separatists threatens to build into all-out war.

Georgian troops launched a major military offensive Friday to regain control over the South Ossetia and the president accused Russia, which has close ties to the separatists, of bombing Georgian territory.

A Russian official denied the bombing. But Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said the Georgian attack will draw retaliation and the Defense Ministry pledged to protect South Ossetians, most of whom have Russian citizenship.

An Associated Press reporter saw tanks and other heavy weapons concentrating on the Russian side of the border with South Ossetia and villagers were fleeing into Russia.

"I saw them (the Georgians) shelling my village," said Maria, who gave only her first name. She looked shocked and was reluctant to speak. She said she and other villagers spent the night in a field and then fled toward the Russian border as the fighting escalated.

more at link: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,399962,00.html

[malaise]

6. Georgia

or the US?

[tekisui]

9. Not sure who the source is

if that is your question. It's from Fux news, and is only mentioned in the headline, claiming a Georgian official said it.

[tekisui]

11. Georgia's Interior Ministry spokesman says that Georgian forces have shot down two Russian combat pl

From the AP
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5hJ0FG-ya3MCooncRgT0MnIGfxKFw

[malaise]

5. I used three words to respond to a thread on what's

happening in Georgia - The Cold War.

[tekisui]

7. It just got hot.

[Solly Mack]

8. Saakashvili is speaking on CNNi

[Solly Mack]

13. "Russian tanks on its soil. Russian aircraft in its airspace"

Calling for the US to come to its assistance

Said Bush said Georgia was a beacon of democracy...

[Solly Mack]

14. civilians dead

waiting to find out more information

[tekisui]

21. 15 Civilians Dead according to Irish Independent

The Russian army has begun moving troops into South Ossetia today to protect the breakaway region from a Georgian military onslaught.

The Georgian miltiary attacked the Russian-backed separatist territory overnight in an effort to regain control of the region from separatist forces.

South Ossetia declared independence in the early 1990s, but this has not been recognised by the international community.

Officials in the area say 15 civilians were killed in overnight Georgian attacks, while Georgia says seven civilians have been killed in Russian bombing raids in Georgian territory.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has warned Georgia that it will face retaliation for the overnight onslaught, which has seen Georgian soldiers surround the South Ossetian capital, Tskhinvali.

Georgia has declared a three-hour ceasefire to allow civilians to flee to safety.

http://www.independent.ie/breaking-news/world-news/europe/russian-army-moves-troops-into-south-ossetia-1450565.html

[KharmaTrain]

10. I Wonder If Chechen Fighters Are Still Active

IRC, this area broke away in the 90's and nationalism in the region runs very high. Of course we won't see or hear much of this on our corporate media...I could see the CNN bobblehead looking scared thinking it was Atlanta, Georgia that was going to be invaded.

The area is also in the oil belt...ya wanna Pootie looked into boooshies eyes...saw there was no soul and said, "go ahead...let the tanks roll".

Thank you for the link...hopefully BBC will have additional coverage.

[tekisui]

12. Russian Troops moving into South Ossetia

Russian troops are reported to be moving into South Ossetia, hours after Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned Georgia that its attack on South Ossetia will draw retaliation.

Channel One television showed a convoy of Russian tanks which it said entered South Ossetia. It said it was expected to reach the provincial capital, Tskhinvali, in a few hours.

There was no immediate comment from Georgian officials.

The move followed a series of statements by Russian leaders pledging to protect Russian citizens in the region in the face of a massive Georgian military attack on South Ossetia.

link: http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gwx6Y4C6ORd-MYwKxOHDEgi8XXMQ

[tekisui]

15. This was the breakaway region in the 90's.

Thousands died in fighting then. Reservists have been called up and mobilized, and I am sure many of them remember what happened before.

[KharmaTrain]

17. Damn...Wiki Is Quick...Already Updated Their Entry...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ossetia

In the last years of the Soviet Union, ethnic tensions between Ossetians and Georgians in Georgia's former Autonomous Oblast of South Ossetia (abolished in 1990) and between Ossetians and the Ingush in North Ossetia evolved into violent clashes that left several hundreds of dead and wounded and created a large tide of refugees on the both sides of the border.


Map of North and South Ossetia.Although a Russian-mediated and OSCE-monitored ceasefire was implemented in South Ossetia in 1992, the Georgian-Ossetian conflict still remains unresolved even though a recent peace plan proposed by the government of Georgia promised the South Ossetians larger autonomy and pledged expanded international involvement in the political settlement of the conflict. Meanwhile, the South Ossetian secessionist authorities demand independence or unification with North Ossetia under the Russian Federation while the international community refuses to recognize South Ossetia as an independent country and considers the area part of Georgia. In recent years, many South Ossetians have been granted Russian citizenship despite acute protests from the Georgian side and the OSCE.

In August, 2008 Russian troops entered the region as a show of force to Georgia.

[tekisui]

16. Georgia is going to try to take the capital.

By midday Friday, Georgian army units were trying to seize Tskhinvali using heavy machine guns and mortars in firefights with separatist paramilitary fighters, Shota Utiashvili, an official at the Interior Ministry of Georgia, said in an interview.

"Now, the army will have to take the capital,” he said, citing “massive fire” aimed at Georgian troops by fighters inside the city.

link: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/09/world/europe/09georgia.html?em

[tekisui]

19. Georgia Ceasefire to End at 10 AM EDT.

Georgia declared a three-hour cease-fire to allow civilians to leave Tskhinvali. Georgia's Interior Ministry spokesman said troops were observing the cease-fire, which began at 3 p.m. local time (7 a.m. EDT).

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hV2N6fVKS5slf10A13Dj_uIdaZ4QD92E3QSO1

[tekisui]

20. Russian Stock Market Plummets 4.18% on News of War

The Russian stock market sank to a new 15-month low Friday, reflecting poor trends on other markets and the escalation of the conflict between Georgia and Ossetia, which could suck Russia in.

http://biznes.onet.pl/7,1803676,wiadomosci.html

[tekisui]

24. Russian Stocks down 6% Now.

MOSCOW (Dow Jones) -- Russian tanks headed south Friday, pulling the country's main stock indexes with them as a long-standing conflict over a breakaway region of neighboring Georgia boiled over.

At 1245 GMT, the benchmark RTS index was trading 6% down at 1,732.26 -- its lowest level since May 2007 -- in reaction to military action in the Caucasus region of South Ossetia.

http://www.smartmoney.com/breaking-news/smw/index.cfm?story=20080808091636

[tekisui]

22. Georgia Pulls Out Troops from Iraq amid ‘Russian Aggression’

President Saakashvili said Georgia was pulling out its troops from Iraq amid, what he called, an open military aggression by Russia in South Ossetia.

“One brigade of the Georgian armed forces is in Iraq and we are calling its back tomorrow,” Saakashvili said in a live interview with CNN on August 8.

Georgia has 2,000 well-trained troops stationed in Iraq.

When asked by an anchor what would he ask to President Bush to do for Georgia, Saakashvili responded, that Georgia now was in the same situation as Finland was in 1939 when the Soviet Union attacked it. “It seems adventures are back… It seems that freedom and human rights are endangered again,” he added.

“This is the moment of truth for everybody, for President Bush, for the United States, for the rest of western world… This is really a crucial moment for history of Europe and high time to wake up for everybody.”

http://www.civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=18966

[tekisui]

23. GEORGIA: RUSSIAN JETS BOMB AIR BASE BY TBILISI

(AGI) - Tbilisi, 8th August - The escalation of aggression between Russia, Georgia and Ossetia has reached the outskirts of Tbilisi. A number of Russian jets have bombed Vaziani Air Base, 25 kilometres from the Georgian capital. The news has come from Kakha Lamaia, an official of Georgia's security forces. "There were no casualties but several buildings were destroyed" Lamaia commented, adding that Russia has in fact "declared war on us".

http://www.agi.it/world/news/200808081452-cro-ren0053-art.html

[tekisui]

25. Russia says 10 peacekeepers killed, 30 wounded.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ijDA5bgxiHlTvS_r-SSjskS1Tq1wD92E4LGG3

Georgia's taken Ossetia's capital.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ijDA5bgxiHlTvS_r-SSjskS1Tq1wD92E4KRO0

[Supersedeas]

26. paging Dr. Rice, do we have a self proclaimed Russian expert ACTING as Sec. of State?

[tekisui]

29. Oil Tanker Rice?

This is news to oilers ears. 500,000 barrels a day are cut because of this. The price will predictably go up. And up.

[charlie and algernon]

27. I wonder how many Russian troops have moved into the capital

during this cease-fire. Looks like we're finally going to see what a modern all-out war between two industrial nations looks like. :(

[tekisui]

28. South Ossetian capital mostly destroyed

Commander of combined peacekeeping forces, major general Marat Kulakhmetov said that South Ossetian capital, Tskhinvali, has been nearly destroyed.

"Gunfire has been suspended. Tskhinvali is enveloped in fires," Interfax's correspondent reported from the site.

Meanwhile, according to some sources, Russian armored vehicles entered the city.

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said 150 Russian tanks and armored personnel carriers entered South Ossetia.

http://www.panarmenian.net/news/eng/?nid=26844

[charlie and algernon]

30. God, this sucks

I just hope Russia doesn't say "fuck it" and try to bring Georgia back into the fold. At least Georgia doesn't have a chance in hell of threatening Russian territory so hopefully that keeps nukes off the table. Now if Georgia has any left over nukes.... :scared:

[tekisui]

31. Russian aircraft bombing Tbilisi took off from Armenia: Violating Agreement

The ministry said necessary assistance would be offered to the Russian peacekeepers and citizens of unrecognized republic. North Caucasus military district said that Russian combat equipment entered Tskhinvali. Georgian new agencies report that Russian military aircrafts bombed Vaziani base near Tbilisi at 15.10 by local time. Two bombs were reportedly dropped on the military base. No casualties are reported in the base. Gruziya Online website reports that the aircraft that bombed Vaziani base had taken off from the territory of Armenia. The agency mentions that there is an air regiment in Russian army’s 102nd base in Gumru, Armenia. According to the agreement signed between Georgia and Armenia, Armenia can not allow any other state to attack Georgia from its territory.

http://en.apa.az/news.php?id=86442

[charlie and algernon]

32. What are Georgia's military capabilities?

apparently they have the capability to challenge Russian fighters, anyone know their armoured strength?

[tekisui]

33. According to this article....

On paper, the small Georgian military is no match for the might of the Russian armed forces. But Mr Saakashvili has calculated that his friends in the West, notably America and Britain, will protect him against an all out Russian attack.


http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4486297.ece

This article says that the Pres. of Georgia is doing this before his time is up, and is depending on US!

[Dogtown]

37. Very Bad News, tekisui

We don't have the wherewithal to engage on another front.

[charlie and algernon]

34. The three hour cease fire is up

[Solly Mack]

35. Pictures

Der Spiegel

http://www.spiegel.de/img/0,1020,1264461,00.jpg

http://www.spiegel.de/img/0,1020,1264599,00.jpg

[thewiseguy]

36. wow look at the number of those tanks entering Georgia

[tekisui]

38. This won't end quickly.

[agent46]

39. Could be a win/win for Cheney's neocons

New markets and trade opportunities opening up for neocon weapons, defense, reconstruction and mineral resource development contractors - with the added potential benefit of a debilitating strain on Russia's ability to fulfill its alliance with Iran. I bet if the Neocons have their way, this "civil war" will become protracted and highly destructive.

[tekisui]

42. Disaster Capitalism.

Natural or Manmade, they are there to Profit$.

[Solly Mack]

40. kick

[Solly Mack]

43. kick