Why is Russia fighting Georgia?

The latest crisis in the South Cacasus has proven to be a genuine strike of luck for Russia and its leadership. After having for several years had to live with the humiliation of witnessing Georgia, with highly provoking Mikheil Saakashvili at the helm, falling further and further into the hands of the West and the United States in particular, it has now identified an opportunity to strike back forcefully.

Having done absolutely nothing to help in reaching a solution when it comes to Georgia’s frozen conflicts, other than maintaining status quo, it has been handing out Russian passports to the people residing in both South Ossetia and Abkhazia for years. Apparently, the fact that a large number of people have rather recently become Russian citizens has very conveniently proven to be reason enough to invade its southern neighbour. Not that Georgia and its government does not have itself to blame just a little for what is taking place at the moment. Russia is likely to have been waiting for something of this kind to happen for years and, quite frankly, President Saakashvili should have seen it coming. And perhaps he did. Provoking Russia into invading his country has certainly showed that Russia’s self-esteem is not confined to drafting angry press releases and making use of its veto in the UN Security Council. The message to the West is extremely clear; ironically, presidents Medvedev and Saakashvili might as a matter of fact have a common interest in presenting this picture, although their motives for doing so are sure to differ.

With the Russian armed forces crushing their Georgian opponents the message its leaders are sending to the West reads: NATO has no place in the South Caucasus. Having, due to its then utter lack of military muscle, had to accept Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania gaining entrance to the alliance, they are determined not to let history repeat itself. With most NATO members, bar the United States under President Bush, rather reluctant to let negotiations with Georgia get anywhere near offering a membership, this latest escalation certainly is not helping Saakashvili’s sake. The objections over Georgia’s instability have been proven right. But is such a goal really enough to engage in a full-scale invasion?

Rather, Russia’s objective is to humiliate not only Georgia but also the United States. Having invested loads of money and tonnes of prestige, it is now unable to help its comrade-in-arms in Iraq. The Emperor is naked, having tied its own hands fighting wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq. So much for being America’s friend. Russia is proving it can do whatever it wants in its own backyard and that the West should bloody well keep out. Leaders in “the near abroad” should also take this latest development into careful consideration when making their own foreign policy choices. Ukraine obviously springs to mind, but also Belarus, if we would chose to take a longer perspective on things. It is, though, perfectly clear at the moment that the ongoing events are likely to put massive strains on the already uneasy relationship between Russia and the West and that they will help to define their intercourse for the foreseeable future. But Russia does not care. To them, the West has brought this upon themselves. Kosovo was just one of many issues that, from their perspective, have already defined all there is to define. By crossing the border not only into South Ossetia but into Georgian controlled territory, while bombing pieces of Georgian infrastructure into pieces, Russia has made it known to the world that the foot has come down, even more so by publicly refuting an opening for negotiations. They are staging a parade for the world to witness and this blog would not be surprised at all were it in the end to go through Tbilisi, the capital.