Posted on 09/11/2008 1:01:57 PM PDT by Tailgunner Joe
GROZNY -- Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov has accused the United States of fomenting unrest in the Caucasus and emboldening Georgia to launch an attack on South Ossetia.
Speaking to members of the Valdai Discussion Club at his residence near Grozny, he said Russia's crushing defeat of Georgian troops in their brief war was the appropriate response.
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili "was dancing to someone else's tune," Kadyrov said during the one-hour briefing. "He started a war, an inhuman war. ... The United States was testing Russia through Georgia, and Russia reacted decisively."
He backed Moscow's recognition of South Ossetia and neighboring Abkhazia's declaration of independence from Georgia, a move condemned internationally and followed only by Nicaragua.
The mountainous Caucasus region is a vital conduit for Caspian oil, but the conflict over South Ossetia and violence in Ingushetia and Dagestan have caused concern in the West over energy security.
"As for Ingushetia and Dagestan -- the West is also influencing these republics," Kadyrov said. "We are ready to support the Russian Federation leadership in all areas -- military and economic."
Despite Kadyrov's satisfaction with progress in restoring security to Chechnya, Grozny is still closed to outsiders unless they have special permission. Large barracks lie at the outskirts of the airport. Soldiers are stationed at regular intervals on the road to Kadyrov's extravagant residence, where peacocks wander in the gardens. On the hillside above is written in Arabic: "Only Allah is higher."
"I am a servant of the nation. There were years when I had to take a machine gun in my hand, but today the people need houses so our focus is on the economy," Kadyrov said.
Mr Kadyrov confirmed that Chechen units and paramilitaries had fought with Russians against Georgians in South Ossetia last month."We Chechens are obliged to be on the front line with Russia because we are warriors, and we know what war is," he explained. - BBC
President of Chechnya.
Not exactly a career path for those seeking a long, peaceful life.
As opposed to Kadyrov, Moscow's puppet.
He inherited the job of Chechen leader when his father was blown up with a bomb during a parade.
Chechens are animals.
The Butcher of Chechnya speaks.
So was Putin operating the strings above this scumbag’s head, or did he have his arm all the way up his ass operating his vocal chords from down below?
Not that it matters. If Putin tells this putz to jump, Kadyrov will immediately jump and say ‘want more height?’ LOL
Moscow's puppet isn't starting any wars they can't finish, thats the difference.
Besides Saakashvil is more like George Soros' puppet anway.
Thanks Joe.
George Soros is a KGB agent, and probably gets his orders from the Kremlin. He may be fomenting this so Russia has an excuse to expand and return to the Soviet Union.
Georgia started a war? Apparently you’re one of that rare breed that can’t find his ass with both hands.
Lol! Soros may be many things, but KGB isn't one of them.
If you’ve got some proof that Georgia DIDN’T start the war in S. Ossetia that doesn’t originate from Media Matters, send it along to the boys in military intelligence and cc: Dana Rohrabacher ok?
Both Georgia and Russia agree that a Georgian police patrol was bombed, killing Georgian police.
Russia claims that they have no idea how it happened and that they just happened to have a fully-prepared armored unit on the scene ready to roll into Georgia.
Georgia's version is slightly more believable: that the bombing was a deliberate provocation by Russia or their Ossetian proxies to prompt a Georgian response, and that the Russian armor was waiting in anticipation of just such a reaction.
Give it rest - if Putin wants a parrot he'll buy one. He doesn't need you.
Whose opinion would you give more weight to, the conservative congressman on the HFAC who has direct access to the testimony and the classified data behind it or some anonymous screen name who claims to know better?
That's not a chain of custody I can trust.
If even the in-Putin's-pocket Interfax admits that the Georgian police vehicle was hit, then it was hit.
He is a Russian puppet, installed by Putin.
Russia has been paying South Ossetians to foment a response from Georgia, and there are a hundred zillion threads here on FR alone to prove that.
Soros not KGB? When did he leave them? And how does he behave any differently than a KGB agent?
Today we consider the future of U.S. relations with Russia in the aftermath of the crisis that erupted with sudden ferocity in the Republic of Georgia five weeks ago.
But before looking ahead, we also need to look back more than five weeks to understand what role U.S. policy toward Russia and Georgia played in setting the stage for these events.
Over the last few months, the international community watched with increasing concern as the Russian government sought to provoke Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili through an escalating series of questionable legal and military actions. Russia established official ties with the separatist government in Abkhazia, issuing passports and citizenship to its residents. Then Moscow dispatched a military jet to down a Georgian reconnaissance craft, and it deployed railway troops to Abkhazia under dubious pretenses. When this failed to stimulate a reaction from the Georgians, the Russians sought to destabilize South Ossetia instead.
On August 8th, the world watched the sad climax of months of provocation. Television screens were filled with the sickening juxtaposition of Russian tanks rolling across Georgian soil while the world celebrated peace and harmony during the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics.
President Saakashvilis decision to take Russias bait and to engage militarily was a terrible blunder. But before we render too harsh a judgment, consider the intensifying provocations that the Georgian government faced, including reports of ethnic cleansing in South Ossetia.
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