Georgia war hearing marred by angry exchanges

[bemildred]

Source: Reuters

TBILISI (Reuters) - A Georgian parliament hearing into the country's war with Russia broke up in angry scenes on Tuesday when a commission member threw a pen at Tbilisi's ex-envoy to Moscow after he said Georgia had been the aggressor.

Russia says it intervened in ex-Soviet Georgia after Tbilisi began shelling the breakaway South Ossetia region. Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili accused Russia of invading and thus starting the war.

Erosi Kitsmarishvili, Georgia's former ambassador to Russia, told the parliamentary commission he had received information "from high-ranking Georgian officials" that Tbilisi was preparing to "militarily storm" the South Ossetian capital, Tskhinvali.

"Russia was ready for this war, but the Georgian leadership started the military action first," he said.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4AO7SL2...

[Tempest]

1. This is the Turkey/Armenian genocide debate all over again

Georgia will never admit to being the aggressor despite all the evidence it was.

[bemildred]

3. Well, I would not say "Georgia", I would a say the current government.

But I think the current government's days are numbered.

[Tempest]

5. The context is obviously about the government

And I agree the government's days are numbered, especially since their strongest supporters (especially financially) Bush and Cheney are leaving office.

[Robbien]

2. The WSJ was complaining that EU said "whoops, sorry" and started talking

to Russia again.

The US far right wingnuts will never admit Georgia was the aggressor and was the one who dropped all the bombs which massacred all the people in South Ossetia.

[bemildred]

4. As back in the 30s, nobody much gives a shit what the WSJ says. nt

[formercia]

6. Georgian row over origins of war

Source: BBC



A former Georgian ambassador has caused uproar in Georgia by saying his country, not Russia, started August's war over South Ossetia.

Erosi Kitsmarishvili, a former envoy to Russia, was testifying at a parliamentary commission hearing into the war the breakaway Georgian region.

One lawmaker threw his pen at Mr Kitsmarishvili and then had to be restrained as he charged towards him.

--snip--

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7750194.stm

---

This guy must read DU.

[rurallib]

7. Wasn't Rove sent over to start that one? To get McCain elected?

[Muttocracy]

8. I think Condi was there in July or something. nt

[Idealism]

9. Yeah and Pat Buchanan of all people was talking about that on MSNBC a month ago

Weird world sometimes

[formercia]

12. Not weird at all

Buchanan and Sashkavilli belong to the same organization, the Knights of Malta. The whole thing was a KOM operation.

[Idealism]

13. Pat was outing the McCain campaigns role in backing Micha

Apparently one of McCains advisors went over to Georgia before the conflict broke out and told him the US and NATO would be behind them in their efforts for liberation, or something to that affect. It seemed odd Pat was throwing McCain under the bus

[formercia]

14. That does seem odd in a way

but, then, that screwed the pooch big time and I think Pat was pissed because of it. The boys like to control both sides of an issue and I've seen Pat do this before.

[Idealism]

15. Yeah I do think Pat considers himself a pragmatist

More like an opportunist if you ask me

[formercia]

16. He likes the attention

The shame is that someone is willing to pay him a salary and force viewers to suffer the intellectual abuse.

He would like people to think he's a pragmatist. All I see is a very dated right-wing reactionary who's time has long gone.

[formercia]

11. Something like that.

It was supposed to be another 'October Surprise' scenario. That what happens when you put some right wing reactionary in charge of a former Soviet Republic. They should have known the Russians would have the Georgian military completely infiltrated with agents. The Russians probably knew more about the timing than the Georgian leadership.

[High Plains]

10. Telling Georgians inconvenient truths. n/t

[formercia]

17. Truths like: A lot of Georgians and Ossetians died for Big Oil.

In WWII, it was Standard Oil. The times and the names have changed, but the same old gang is destroying countries and millions of lives, if there's a buck to be made.

[eppur_se_muova]

18. Fighting over a war? Very meta.

"Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room!"

[bemildred]

21. How about wars to end war, that's very meta too.

Like fucking for virginity, but less fun.

[Robb]

24. I had the same thought. nt

[formercia]

19. But who is really responsible for the War?

Who was really pulling the strings?

[bemildred]

20. Well, seriously ...

The prime driver of events would seem to be arrogance and incompetence on one side, and perception and preparedness on the other. What do you say about people that go around yanking on strings that are not attached to anything, charging at windmills with broken lances?

[formercia]

22. George W. Quixote?

[bemildred]

23. Yeah. exactly, but he has a lot of colleagues in delusion.

We have fake wars against fake enemies that we pay for with fake money. Fake solutions to fake problems that we pay for with fake money. It's all show biz, not enough fake money to be made in the real economy or real problems.

[bemildred]

25. Saakashvili defends decision to attack South Ossetia

TBILISI (AFP) — President Mikheil Saakashvili on Friday rejected criticism over Georgia's August attack on the breakaway region of South Ossetia, saying it was necessary to ensure the security of his country.

"Yes, we decided to undertake military actions in Tskhinvali," he said in testimony before a parliamentary probe into the conflict, referring to the South Ossetian capital.

"We took this decision, it was a difficult decision that any responsible government would have taken to ensure the security of its citizens," he said.

Saakashvili has in the last weeks come under criticism abroad and even at home for his decision to send troops to South Ossetia, only to see them defeated by Russian forces.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hFlm...