Irony, Double Standard, or Both?
In the last few weeks, intense fighting has broken out between Russia and Georgia, a nation that White House continually emphasizes the sovereignty of, and although we do not know which nation is right, the US has already spoken out strongly in favor for Georgia. There are many reasons behind this sentiment, and even though it doesn’t necessarily matter, let’s take a stroll through those reasons anyways. Firstly, any conflict that involves Russia and another state; the US, because of historical circumstances, will always favor the other, non-Russian state. Secondly, Georgia is a successful democratic state, one of the few that arose since the fall of the Soviet Union. Thirdly, Georgia, before being at war with Russia, had 2000 troops deployed in Iraq (Georgia! Who knew?!). That may not seem like a large number compared to the 100,000 US soldiers deployed there, but Georgia was the only nation, of the “Coalition of the willing”, besides the United Kingdom to have more than 1,000 troops stationed in Iraq.
However the most interesting statement from the United States about this incident is President Bush’s reaction, stating that “Russia has invaded a sovereign nation… Such an action is unacceptable in the 21st century.” To which Jon Stewart sarcastically replied “Yes, this century is all about preemptive strikes.” However, the irony becomes more apparent as you move further away from the president. Secretary Rice enthusiastically spoke out against Russia. Although her long term memory may be intact as seen by her analogy it seems as though the short term memory of the whole White House, and maybe even of the entire Republican Party might be flawed. Rice stated that “This is not 1968, in Czechoslovakia, where Russia can threaten its neighbors, take over a capital, and overthrow a government and get away with it. Times have changed.” Looking back at this administration it doesn’t seem as though they have.
Surprisingly the most ironic yet blunt remark did not come from the White House but from the presumptive Republican nominee John McCain, who bluntly said “In the 21st century nations don’t invade other nations “Even though presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama has not said anything substantial about the issue, he has not had a double standard towards the conflict as the Republican party does.
One may say that the situation between Russo-Georgian conflict, and the Iraq War are different, and even though that may be the case, the bluntness, and the lack of effort to hide the double standard, and in turn the irony shows many failures in this administrations foreign policy. To the rest of the world these statements sound useless and ironic, it seems as though the US cannot counter or resolve this issue diplomatically, as it does not have any influence in the sphere because of their own militaristic foreign policy.
Unfortunately, it seems as though all the US can do in this situation is sit back and hope that Russia will live up to its word and withdraw its troops as promised. Ironically, that is exactly what Iraqi citizens can do as well in respect to the United States.
This conflict is very interesting to say the least. Georgia is in the midst of becoming a member of NATO, however, as we can guess, this does not make the USSR (yes, you read right) happy. On the flip side, South Ossetia and Abkhazia have declared independence, and with that they may be absorbed by the USSR. As an American I can see way the White House isn’t pleased with Russia’s actions, however, the people of the aforementioned regions do have the right of sovereignty. Mikheil Saakashvili, the president of Georgia, is known for being quite a sycophant, undoubtedly to bring him closer to the west. Although Saakashvili and Georgia talk the talk, they have trouble walking the walk, as the nation is deeply divided along ethnic lines. Despite reports by news agencies, Georgia remains a nation barely clinging to life without Western support. It finds itself in an endless feud with Russia and relies on the West for its military armaments. The United States, NATO, and the EU must carefully weigh this situation. In my opinion, the West should say, “Georgia, get yourself out of this mess and THEN we’ll talk. If you want to be a respected nation you must conduct your own foreign affairs, especially when it concerns a breakaway region.” Let the people of South Ossetia and Abkhazia decide for themselves.