The West Must Help Prevent War in Georgia
Ron Asmus, German Marshall Fund of the US | June 3, 2008
Western calls for restraint are ineffective as tensions rise in Georgia over Abkhazia, the region where Russia supports separatist aspirations that threaten Georgia's national unity. ++ "Moscow seems determined to provoke Tbilisi to take military action that would discredit Georgia in western eyes." ++ Besides constraining Russia with the threat of diplomatic consequences, the US/EU should encourage Georgia to engage in dialogue with the Abkhaz leadership, and stress the importance of peace for the sake of economic and human ties.
