Byzantine Blog

Special Cases Everywhere

With the Russian parliament backing the independence of the breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, President Dmitry Medvedev gives his views on the issue in an exclusive interview with Russia Today.

RT: Immediately after Kosovo’s independence was recognised, Moscow said this could become a precedent for South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Today, you made a decision to support these republics’ independence. Why did Russia do it? Does this square with international law?

Medvedev: I'll start with your second question. This is fully in line with international law. When the case of Kosovo arose, my colleagues said this was a special case, or, as experts in international affairs say, casus sui generis. Well, each case of such recognition is a special case. The situation in Kosovo was special, and the situation in South Ossetia and Abkhazia is special as well.

In our situation, it is quite obvious that we made this decision in order to prevent genocide and annihilation of these peoples, and to help them to come to their feet. These unrecognised republics have been struggling for their independence for seventeen years now. Despite all attempts by the international community, no progress was made during this time. Until just recently, we tried to help restore the state unite of Georgia. However, it didn’t work.

The decision to launch an aggression buried all hopes of achieving an agreement. Thus, under current circumstances, the only way to preserve these peoples is to recognise them as subjects of international law, to recognize their state independence.

That is why our decision is fully in line with international law, the UN Charter, Helsinki declarations and other international documents.

RT: Is Russia prepared for a long and tough confrontation with leading world powers that the decision it made today may lead to? And, in general, aren’t we afraid of the prospect to enter another Cold War?

Medvedev: We are not afraid of anything, the prospect of another Cold War included. Of course, we don't want that. In this situation, everything depends on the stand of our partners in the world community, our partners in the West. If they want to preserve good relations with Russia, they will understand the reason for making such a decision, and the situation will be calm. But if they choose a confrontational scenario, well, we‘ve been through all kinds of situations, and we’ll survive.

RT: You have signed the six-point agreement. One of the points says Russia should pull its troops out of Georgia. Nevertheless, Russia is still being accused of not meeting this obligation. Is this true? Are there Russian troops left in Georgia?

Medvedev: That's not true. Russia has fully met its obligations stemming from the six principles of the so-called Medvedev-Sarkozy agreement. Our troops have been withdrawn from Georgia, except for the so-called security corridor.

RT: The presidential campaign is underway in the US. Both candidates have spoken more than once on Russia’s actions in Georgia. Don’t you think this situation is being used as an instrument for the political struggle inside the US?

Medvedev: Well, as far as I know, usually during the elections in the United States of America, voters are quite indifferent to what is happening abroad. But if one of the candidates managed to use this question, well, godspeed him. The main thing is that it should not lead to international tensions. I have no doubt that both candidates will try to spin this situation for his purposes. But such are the rules of the election campaign.

To watch the interview please click the VIDEO link.

How to Collect More Popularity Points in US?

With U.S. politicians calling for the international community to isolate Russia, talks on a 'new cold war' have become more frequent in the media. The roots of the strong rhetoric go deeper, though, than the recent conflict with Georgia. Presidential hopefuls are using it as an opportunity to earn some foreign policy credentials. Tensions between Moscow and Washington rose after President Medvedev recognised Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent. President Bush called the move "irrational", urging Moscow to reverse it. Tough talk has also come from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Vice President Dick Cheney.

In response, Russia has made it clear it doesn't seek confrontation, but it's ready for the worst. “We are not afraid of anything, including the prospect of a Cold War. But of course, we don't want that,” said Medvedev on Tuesday.

The cold war rhetoric started long before the conflict in Georgia. The two sides have wrangled over U.S. plans of a missile defense shield in Eastern Europe. What has only poured oil into the fire is the U.S. now finally signing the agreement with Poland and the Czech Republic to host elements of the system on their territories.

Some experts argue what we see now is in some way the consequences of President Bush’s foreign policy mistakes. Matthew Duss from the Centre for American Progress said: “The United States could have dealt more productively or helped Russia in Georgia to deal with this issue more productively starting years ago. I think that goes to the kind of weakness of George W. Bush’s foreign policy.”

At the height of the Russia-Georgia conflict McCain has repeatedly attacked Russia much more frequently and vehemently than his rival Barack Obama. Experts say experience in foreign policy and knowledge of Russia, Europe and the Middle East are McCain’s advantages over his rival. And McCain has tried to play this card to cast his opponent as weak when it comes to foreign policy choices.

But the tough strategy might not be a winning one for McCain and the country - given the U.S. already has two wars to deal with.

What Change Does Obama Offer in Reality?

One of Barack Obama's key messages during the presidential campaign is the need for change. And many Americans share the judgment. However, it seems this need is not reflected in the U.S. presidential hopeful's approach to Russia.

While almost every person living in America would admit that a number of domestic problems need to be dealt with as soon as possible, many also have serious concerns when it comes to the foreign policy of the United States. And with one more day to go before Democrats wrap up their Convention, a man with decades of foreign policy experience - the one Barack Obama has chosen as his Vice President - had a chance to woe the American public.

The bar for him was very high, and Biden needed to play big. ”For the last seven years, the administration has failed to face the biggest forces shaping this century: the emergence of Russia, China and India as great powers,” said Biden. Calling Bush’s foreign policies a ‘catastrophe’, Biden was quick to echo the Bush administration’s criticism of Russia. ”We will hold Russia accountable for its actions!” Biden pledged.

But this rhetoric seems to be blowing far from the winds of change that the Democrats have been calling for. Meanwhile ordinary people believe America needs to reconsider its foreign policy. “The U.S. foreign policy today is too imperialistic,” says one. Another says America interferes too much in the business of other countries.

“I definitely think we need to change some of our foreign policies,” says one woman on the streets. And there are even those who say the US current stance on the situation in Caucasus is not more than a sign of weakness. “The US is probably afraid,” a man on the street says.

EU Considers Sanctions Against Russia

Russia's decision to recognise the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia has prompted a strong reaction from the European Union, with French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner saying that sanctions and other measures are being considered. However France, which currently holds EU's rotating presidency, gave no further details on what the sanctions would entail.

Meanwhile, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says the Russian authorities have heard nothing about any EU sanctions against the country. Moscow insists it is acting in full compliance with the six-point peace deal hammered out in mid-August between Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy.

German Weekly in Propaganda Row over Ossetia Conflict

Europe’s largest news magazine has been accused of propaganda by one of its own staff, who says it refused to publish pictures showing the devastation left by the Georgian military in South Ossetia. The photographer believes that the liberal German weekly Spiegel made a political decision to ignore the images as part of a pro-American stance on the conflict.

Pavel Kassin has been working for the weekly since 1990 and has never before had any problems getting his photographs published. Last week, he and his German colleague Uwe Klussman, employed by Spiegel’s Moscow bureau, were sent to South Ossetia to report on the aftermath of the war. On his return, Pavel sent 29 pictures to the magazine’s Hamburg HQ - but was shocked to find that none of them appeared in the latest issue released on Monday.

Kassin was so angry he gave an interview to the Russian daily Izvestia. “Could it be that the most liberal, democratic and independent magazine has gone down the road of ideological one-sided propaganda?” he said. “In my view this is one of the rare cases when Spiegel has taken a pro-American stance.”

In the last three issues Spiegel has given extensive coverage to the war in the Caucasus, but only a few articles have dealt with the situation in South Ossetia. The rest have shown Georgia as a ‘martyr’ suffering from ‘Russian aggression’. Most images featured ruined houses in the Georgian town of Gori and crushed military ships in the port of Poti.

Meanwhile, the South Ossetian capital Tskhinval, which suffered 12 hours of bombing by the Georgian military, is shown like a city living an ordinary life. Most photographs were by correspondents of the world’s leading news agencies. The weekly has also used several pictures by Russian photographers from Reuters and AP.

This year Spiegel has seen changes in its top management. Its long-time editor-in-chief Stefan Aust was replaced by two new chief editors.

SCO Supports Russia’s Role in South Ossetia

Members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation have signed a declaration in support of Russia's peacekeeping mission in South Ossetia. The member states expressed support for Russia's peacekeeping efforts, but pointed out any solution must be based on the principle of territorial integrity.

The declaration is a direct response to President Dmitry Medvedev’s call to support Russia’s role in the Abkhazia and South Ossetia independence dispute. Speaking at the SCO summit in Dushanbe, Medvedev thanked the members for their understanding and objective evaluation of Russia’s peacekeeping mission.

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is an alliance which was founded on the basis of the Shanghai Five (China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Russia). Its priority and founding principle is security and stability in the Greater Central Asian region.

“Unfortunately, we have to state that attempts are being made to secure certain interests using force, not the principles of strict observance of international law and denial of confrontational bloc thinking,” said the President. “A fine example of such irresponsible criminal actions is Georgia's aggression against South Ossetia. It is well-known who connived with the Georgian authorities and even incited them, pursuing their own profit. Such behavior is unacceptable and should be stopped. In such an extreme situation, we remained reserved and continued our responsible and predictable policy.

“We are confident that the position of SCO member states will produce an appropriate resonance through the international community, and I hope this will give a serious signal to those who are trying to justify the aggression that was committed,” Medvedev added in his address to SCO national leaders.

More Blasts Hit Ukrainian Arms Depot

Blasts are continuing at a major arms depot on fire in the North-East of Ukraine. In the town of Losovaya, a massive blaze has been raging at the facility which is packed with hundreds of tonnes of weapons. On Thursday morning the fire had been contained but hot weather sparked more explosions. Several thousand residents have been evacuated and two servicemen were injured. Ukraine has declared a state of emergency.

The fire broke out on Wednesday afternoon in a nearby forest before spreading to the storage facility, which contains around ninety-five thousand tons of weapons. It set off a series of explosions of artillery shells and other weapons. It is the latest in a series of similar incidents at military ammunition depots in Ukraine.

On August 19, 2006 and May 18, 2007 fires broke out at military base А2985 in Novobogdanovka, leaving four injured. On April 11, 2008 a blast occurred at rocket base 275 injuring three pyrotechnists. However the last major fire – that led to population evacuated – occurred in Zaporozhskaya region on May 6, 2004.

U.S. Aid to Georgia Lacks Transparency - Russia's UN Ambassador

It’s unclear what the United States intentions are in delivering aid to Georgia, according to Russia’s ambassador to the UN. Vitaly Churkin says, in contrast, Russia has shown complete transparency. "I wish the U.S. would show the same kind of transparency when they bring their 'humanitarian assistance' in military aircraft and military vessels.

But our effort is fully transparent. It has been highly praised by most of the visiting officials from international institutions, and the Russian Federation itself has been doing more than anything else to help people who were victimised by Georgian aggression in South Ossetia," Churkin told journalist after a UN Security Council meeting in New York.

To watch the full press briefing, please click the VIDEO link

U.S. Citizen was Among Georgian Commandos - Russian Military

A U.S. passport was found in a building in South Ossetia occupied by Georgian troops, a Russian military spokesperson revealed on Thursday. After Russian peacekeepers cleared the heavily defended building, a passport belonging to a Texan named Michael Lee White was discovered inside. Deputy Chief of Russia's General Staff Anatoly Nagovitsyn showed photocopies of the passport to media in a press briefing on Thursday.

“There is a building in Zemonekozi - a settlement to the south of Tskhinval that was fiercely defended by a Georgian special operations squad. Upon clearing the building, Russian peacekeepers recovered, among other documents, an American passport in the name of Michael Lee White of Texas," said Nagovitsyn.

Neither the owner of the passport nor his remains were found at the scene, despite a thorough search. "I do not know why he was there, but it is a fact that he was in the building, among Georgian special forces troops,” Nagovitsyn said.

The briefing was delivered on the same day Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told CNN, "We have serious reasons to believe that American citizens were right at the heart of the military action". Putin said the conflict in South Ossetian may have been planned to benefit one of the U.S. presidential candidates.

Russia Tests Intercontinental Missile in Kamchatka

Russia has successfully tested an intercontinental ballistic missile. The country's Defence Ministry has reported that it hit the target on the testing ground in the far eastern region of Kamchatka.

The Ministry claims the weapon is capable of bypassing the most advanced missile defence systems. Although it has been on stand-by for 21 years, the Ministry said the weapon has shown it can effectively hit high-security facilities.