RUSSIA CAN MAKE ANY MOVE TO PREVENT GEORGIA FROM JOINING NATO

PanARMENIAN.Net
30.10.2006 17:23 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russia has two clear objectives as regards Georgia,
Chief of the Department of CIS Countries of the Russian Institute of
Strategic Research, Candidate of Historical Sciences Alexander Skakov
said in an interview with PanARMENIAN.Net. "I am nor speaking of a
fantastic dream to see Georgia a friendly state. Russia insists on
maintenance of the current format of peacekeeping operation in Abkhazia
and South Ossetia without making any attempt to internationalize
the peaceful process. It first of all wishes the settlement to be
convenient not for Moscow or Tbilisi but for the people of these
unrecognized republics," Skakov remarked.

He underscored that Georgia’s aspiration to join the NATO tenses
the relations. "We do not eye the NATO as hostile organization but
the anti-Russian vector has strengthened after Latvia, Estonia and
to some extent Lithuania and Poland joint the Alliance. Georgia will
boost this anti-Russian mood. We do not think that Georgia’s joining
the NATO is a decoded matter Influential states like Germany, France
and Canada hold an opinion that the further enlargement of the NATO
is inappropriate. Besides, Georgia will not meet the NATO standards
in the near future not to mention the unsettled conflicts on the
Georgian territory. The matter concerns only Tbilisi’s joining the ID
(Intense Dialogue). It does not lay any obligation on the Alliance
and does not determine Georgia’s membership on the NATO. That is why
it cannot arouse Russia’s discontent. Each country itself decided
its military allies," the Russian expert said. However, he remarked
Russian can take any move to prevent Georgia’s membership in the
NATO. "Some forces in Tbilisi, Washington or Brussels may think that
Russia "swallowing" NATO’s enlargement towards the Baltic states will
tolerate Georgia’s joining the Alliance.

Russia can for example one-sidedly recognize the independence of
Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Thus.

Georgia will have to choose whether to grant independence to seceded
autonomies and bravely head for the NATO or stay in actual war with
Russia and forger about the NATO, since the Alliance will never accept
Georgia, which is in state of war with its northern neighbor. Tbilisi
can get into its own trap," Skakov underscored.