Re: hotwax only knows
marika
UK public split on Russian conflict, politics.co.uk poll reveals
Friday, 22 Aug 2008 18:52
Prime minister Putin led Russian diplomatic efforts to legitimise the
conflict Printer friendly version The British public is split on its views
of Russian military actions during its conflict with Georgia, a new
politics.co.uk poll reveals today.
In one of the first surveys of British opinion since Russia entered South
Ossetia two weeks ago, a slim majority of respondents expressed sympathy
with Russian actions.
Fifty seven per cent of those questioned said Russia acted proportionately
in the conflict, with 43 per cent saying it acted disproportionately.
Asked if the UK should impose economic sanctions on Russia, 71 per cent of
respondents said no, with only 24 per cent supporting the idea.
But when users were asked if they could imagine a situation where the UK
went to war with Russia, only 52 per cent said no, with 48 per cent of users
saying they could envisage that possibility.
Asked more generally about UK-Russian relations, the picture becomes
slightly more uniform.
Not a single respondent described relations as 'good' or 'very good'. Thirty
eight per cent said they were 'OK', 33 per cent said they were 'bad' and 26
per cent described relations as 'very bad'.
Nor were there any clear answers to how Britain should try to change Russian
behaviour, apart from a definite belief the UK should not try to do so on
its own. Only ten per cent of users selected that option.
A majority of people wanted the UK to go through the EU route, with 52 per
cent of users picking this option. Twenty-four per cent believed Britain
should go through the UN and 14 per cent wanted Britain to work in tandem
with the United States.
Russia has promised to withdraw all of its troops from the region by today,
with western diplomats watching closely to make sure Russia keeps to its
ceasefire agreement.
"marika" <marik...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:OcGdnVeDb_vh5U_V...@rcn.net...
>
> http://www.civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=19268
>
> Burjanadze to Visit U.S.
>
> Civil Georgia, Tbilisi / 23 Aug.'08 / 01:03
>
> http://www.moonofalabama.org/2008/08/the-mysterious.html#more
>
>
>
> But the entire coverage of the South Ossetia mess has been like watching a
> miniaturized and speeded up MCM* coverage (and cheerleading) of the runup
> to
> the Iraq Invasion. Cherry picking of information; ignoring things actually
> reported on in favor of the MCM Narrative (even things reported on their
> own
> pages or broadcasts! Just like in the Iraq Invasion runup); and somehow
> the
> reports follow the Maladministration's lines and spin. So sad.
>
> And what's with Angela Merkel pushing the BushCo line? Has he threatened
> her
> with another sneak shoulder rub?
>
> Posted by: jawbone | Aug 24, 2008 12:43:54 AM | 22
>
> Former parliamentary speaker, Nino Burjanadze, will leave for the
> United States on August 23, her press office said.
>
> Burjanadze, who is now the president and founder of the Foundation for
> Democracy and Development (FDD), will participate the events organized
> by National Democratic Institue and International Republican
> Institute, FDD said in a press release, without specifying details.
> It, however, also said that meetings with the U.S. Department of State
> officials were also planned.
>
> Burjanadze said on August 18 Russian troops' withdrawal was now a
> priority, but the government would definitely face "tough questions"
> afterwards about what led to the conflict and why it all happened.
>
> "I'm afraid it will not be very easy for the government to answer all
> the questions," Nino Burjanadze said in an interview with Reuters.
>
> FDD said in a separate announcement on August 20 that its board of
> advisors met to discuss the recent developments and to launch
> elaboration of a policy paper on the ways out of the current crisis.
>
> "Of course making a right assessment of the recent developments is
> very important," FDD press release quoted Burjanadze. "But at this
> stage, I want to ask you [referring to the FDD's board of advisors],
> to make a focus on how to help the country out of this very difficult
> situation. It is of special importance now to objectively analyze [the
> situation] and to table recommendations and set of mechanisms for
> overcoming the crisis."
> "marika" <marik...@gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:V5KdnZEkNrVu7E_V...@rcn.net...
>>
>> "marika" <marik...@gmail.com> wrote in message
>> news:s9OdnULet6Ab7E_V...@rcn.net...
>>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3JjJLqCUtg
>>
>> http://www.flightstats.com/go/Airport/airportsOfTheWorld.do?countryCode=GE
>
marika
Russia says it has fulfilled a pledge to withdraw its combat troops from
Georgia in line with a ceasefire deal.
But Moscow says it intends to maintain a peacekeeping presence of 2,600
troops in "buffer zones" around the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South
Ossetia.
The Georgian government has denounced the move as unacceptable.
The White House said checkpoints and buffer zones were "definitely not part
of the agreement", and called for an immediate withdrawal of Russian troops.
The "buffer zones" extend far beyond any pre-existing security zones, and
the BBC's diplomatic correspondent, Jonathan Marcus, says Western diplomats
fear that Moscow is determined to define the parameters of the interim
security arrangements in its own terms.
See a map of the region
Our correspondent says that part of the problem is the extraordinary
vagueness of the EU-brokered ceasefire deal, which speaks only of
"additional security measures" in "the immediate proximity of South
Ossetia" - proximity being defined as a distance of "several kilometres".
While Georgia insists that Russian troops must leave its territory, a senior
Russian general said the situation remained unstable, accusing Georgia of
planning further military operations.
'Snail's pace'
Following a statement by the Russian defence ministy that the withdrawal was
complete, US President George W Bush and his French counterpart, Nicolas
Sarkozy, expressed their disatisfaction.
They agreed in a telephone call that "Russia is not in compliance" with the
ceasefire pact and it should comply immediately, US officials said.
PEACE PLAN
No more use of force
Stop all military actions for good
Free access to humanitarian aid
Georgian troops return to their places of permanent deployment
Russian troops to return to pre-conflict positions
International talks about security in South Ossetia and Abkhazia
Crisis day-by-day
Who started the conflict?
Eyewitness: Russian withdrawal
In pictures: Troops on the move
"[The Russians] have without a doubt failed to live up to their obligations.
Establishing checkpoints, buffer zones are definitely not part of the
agreement," the White House said.
Earlier, the deputy chief of the Russian General Staff, Gen Anatoly
Nogovitsyn, said that nearly 2,600 "peacekeeping" troops with armoured cars
and helicopters would remain inside Georgia for the foreseeable future.
Gen Nogovitsyn said Russian troops were setting up checkpoints on the
borders of South Ossetia and Abkhazia with Georgia.
But the so-called "zone of responsibility" also includes Georgia's main
airbase at Senaki, some 40km (25 miles) from the boundary with Abkhazia,
which sits astride vital road and rail links to the Black Sea port of Poti.
BBC correspondents on the ground say they have seen what appears to be a
significant Russian troop movement out of Georgia.
The BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse in Igoeti - just 35km (21 miles) from the
capital, Tbilisi - says he saw Russian troops leave the town, joining a
column of hundreds of armoured vehicles on the road towards South Ossetia.
Our correspondent says buses of Georgian police are arriving in Igoeti to
take control after Russian troops removed their roadblocks and pulled out.
But another correspondent in the nearby town of Korvaleti says Georgian
police vehicles there are still being blocked at checkpoints.
Desperate need
Russia's four-day war with Georgia began after Tbilisi tried to retake the
Moscow-backed breakaway province of South Ossetia on 7 August, following
days of clashes with separatists.
Thousands of civilians are reported to be in urgent need of relief supplies
The fighting ended with an EU-brokered ceasefire deal, and a promise by
Moscow to pull back the bulk of its forces by 22 August.
The commander of US forces in Europe, Gen John Craddock, said earlier that
Russia was taking too long to withdraw, and added "if they are moving, it is
at a snail's pace".
Meanwhile, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio
Guterres, who has been visiting South Ossetia, said he was deeply moved by
the humanitarian problem there and called for the early voluntary return of
all refugees.
The UN estimates that nearly 160,000 people have been displaced across the
whole of Georgia since the conflict began.
The Georgian government is seeking $1-2bn (£0.5-1bn) in aid to repair and
develop infrastructure following the conflict with Russia, the head of the
US government aid agency, USAid, said.
The World Bank has also announced that it is sending a team of experts to
the country to assess its reconstruction needs.
'War with Nato'
Diplomatic efforts at the UN have reached deadlock over rival resolutions on
the crisis from France and Russia.
Russia has reiterated its opposition to a rival French text, which reaffirms
Georgia's territorial integrity.
FROM THE TODAY PROGRAMME
Georgia's President Mikhail Saakashvili told the BBC he would never accept
what he called Russia's "annexation of its territory".
He warned that Russia's involvement in South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Georgia
was intended to send a strong message to the West, and he called for "a
united response" from Nato.
"It's all about reconsidering the role of Nato, the role of international
law and borders in this part of the world. This is no longer about Georgia
anymore," he said.
"Russia decided to win war with Nato without firing a single shot at it."
A Nato spokeswoman says Russia's defence ministry has decided to halt all
military co-operation with the bloc to protest at what Moscow calls the
alliance's biased, pro-Georgian view of the conflict.
The move by Moscow followed a Nato statement that there would be no
"business as usual" with Moscow unless its troops pulled out of Georgia.
"marika" <marik...@gmail.com> wrote in message
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marika
"marika" <marik...@gmail.com> wrote in message
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marika
"marika" <marik...@gmail.com> wrote in message
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Wolf Kirchmeir
> http://www.politics.co.uk/news/opinion-former-index/foreign-policy/uk-public-split-on-russian-conflict-politics-co-uk-poll-reveals-$1237487.htm
[,,,]
Forgot to check the Newsgroup box, did we?
--
Wolf Kirchmeir
marika
"Wolf Kirchmeir" <wol...@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:48d2a154$0$7083$9a6e...@news.newshosting.com...
>
> Forgot to check the Newsgroup box, did we?
>
>
> --
i don't understand
where is this box, is it like a suggestion box
mk5000