Georgia on My Mind (part 1)
Georgia on my Mind (Part 1)
September 8, 2008 by Teodorico T. Haresco, Jr.
Businessworld
My wife is Russian: straightforward, protective, and paranoid; beautiful in her melancholy. Gazing on her sleeping form, I am transported to that early morning's haze-covered no-man's-land I stood on. Behind me, men fidget with their battlegear, nervously anticipating the order to engage. Facing us are hordes, drawn to the scent of blood and pillage, intent on seizing the trade routes. They must be stopped: their invasion of my territory clearly a dagger poised at the Motherland's back, as they seek to control her rich resources.
This was not reality; but Risk, a game of conquest where victory lay in controlling entire continents, defeating armies; the outcome determined by a dice-roll. Yet this could have been the scene as Russian Armies faced Georgian forces surrounding Tskhinvali, South Ossetia's capital, on the morning of 08 August.
Russian forces repelled a Georgian invasion of South Ossetia; defending her people and her borders against a former Warsaw Pact member now backed by a global rival, intent on economic castration. Centuries of cross-enculturation with foreign peoples; from Christianity's spread during the early A.D. Byzantine Empire, to vengeful vigilance against the 11th century Mongol Hordes' genocidal purges, and the Ottoman Empire in later centuries, have forged the national psyche. Understandably, it is one of uncompromising paranoia, hardened, and vigilant against opportunistic border empires intent on ravaging its overabundant natural resources. It is Pyrrhus-like, scorching everything to safeguard the Motherland from Napoleon's Imperial Guard, the German Blitzkrieg, and the US Iron Curtain.
The Bear is again agitated, efficient in its righteous indignation and might. But unlike the Eagle, Lion, or Dragon's predatory disposition, it will defend territory and brood against another aggressive Western Empire that is encroaching on its boundaries, using vassal states like Poland or Georgia with "missile defense shields."
World to War?
It was Kosovo that sparked World War I, with Archduke Franz Ferdinand's assassination; the Polish seizure of Danzig (1922 Treaty of Versailles), fed German anger and ignited World War II. It may again be in territories east of the Danube – like Georgia or Ukraine – that World War III erupts.
Firefights between Georgia and separatist South Ossetia and Abkhazia began on 31 July, when two explosives rocked the Georgian village of Eredvi. Russia categorically declared on 05 August that it would intervene to protect the many "Russian Passport holders" in South Ossetia. The Georgian mobilization was perhaps motivated by President Sashkaavili's misconception that Russia would stand idly by, and that the US would unequivocally support Georgia. (Since 1998 the US had been training and equipping Georgia's army.)
Consequently, Sashkaavili declared a ceasefire, brazenly unheeded as the shooting worsened. Later, he vowed to forcibly control South Ossetia and Abkhazia's "criminal regimes." Russian forces engaged Georgian forces, encircling Tskhinvali, South Ossetia's capital, on 08 August.
With people displaced and dying, and the UN Security Council (EU needing Russian oil and gas) stymied over a Press Statement demanding the hostilities' cessation, Russian forces moved in.
Russia Energizing EU: US Where?
That's Mother Russia: beautiful and protective. Like the traditional toy Matrioskha – dolls containing smaller dolls within - what you see is what you get. Russia has always protected her sovereignty, security, and trade routes. She was never Imperialist: avariciously seeking gold, thinly disguised as implanting Christianity; or subduing a subcontinent to ensure a tea supply; or addling a civilization with opium.
The Georgian conflict is similar. Russia will strongly oppose South Ossetia, Abkhazia, and the Ukraine joining NATO, because of a massive strategic imbalance that can directly threaten the motherland's survival.
The Iron Curtain supposedly meant to limit a Soviet flood of produce, technology, and energy from Russia's fertile grounds, into Europe, because it would leave no market for the US. The Latin American markets would not be enough to offset Western Europe's loss. While the Curtain is gone, the US "Missile Defense Shield" stands in its place.
Georgia, joining NATO, would encourage the Ukraine and Crimea, once again ringing Russia's backdoor with hostiles.
Another strategic factor is Central Asian oil and natural gas – the world's third largest reserve – moving to the EU. The 249km Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline through Georgia is key route for Western Europe's energy, and originates from Baku, the capital and largest city of the post-Warsaw country Azerbaijan. The western pipe transports about 800,000bbl/day into Europe – a critical route - ensuring their economies remain fueled. Moreover, over 1/3 of EU crude imports come from Russia – worth approximately US$60B in total. Top Russian oil importers are Germany (US$11.9B), Italy (US$6.3B), Poland (US$5.5B), France (US$5.0B), and the UK (US$3.1B) – incidentally, major NATO members.
Russia, with its own pipeline into Azerbaijan, stands independent.
The next article explores how the Philippines can cash in on supplementing the US and the EU's energy demands.
About the Author:
Teodorico Haresco is one of the Philippine's leading businessmen, who has devoted his life to developing creative solutions that deliver long-term socio-economic benefits to his country and his countrymen. He is primarily known for his involvements in the President's Bridge Program , a sustained infrastructure and fast-track rural development project spanning over 14 years and tailored to deliver a means towards countryside development.
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Georgia on My Mind (part 1)