Will
there be another war in the Caucasus? This is a smoldering issue on
more than one front, finds Eric Walberg, in the first of a two-part
analysis of the spectre of conflict in this crucial crossroads. With
the collapse of the Soviet Union, the world expected a new era of peace
and disarmament. But what happened? Instead of diminishing, US and NATO
presence throughout Europe, the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and Central
Asia rapidly increased, and the world experienced one war after another
-- in the Caucasus, Yugoslavia, Iraq and Afghanistan, each one hotter
and more horrible than ...
Moscow said on Friday it linked the improvement of soured relations with Tbilisi to 'realistically minded' political figures in Georgia.
The statement came in the wake of a Thursday meeting in Moscow between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and one of Georgia's opposition leaders, Nino Burdzhanadze.
The statement said Russia and Georgia need to search for a way out of the impasse in their relations, which "is key to peace in the Trans-Caucasus."
Moscow stressed that it linked the restoration of relations "with those political figures in Georgia who take a realistic view of the current situation in the region."
The ministry said various aspects of "the current complex state of Russian-Georgian relations" were discussed and that "despite the ongoing crisis and the absence of diplomatic relations between Russia and Georgia, it is essential to search for a way out of this impasse."
Burdzhanadze also met with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
The ...
