Georgia’s Lessons
[ News ] [
Papers ]
Cross-strait Situation
Different from Georgia, President Says
(CNA, Aug. 31, 2008) President Ma Ying-jeou told an Italian weekly magazine that the situation
across the Taiwan Strait is different from that of Georgia
and Russia, thanks to
thawing ties with China
and the U.S. commitment to
helping Taiwan
maintain adequate defense capability.
US Welcomes China’s Apparent
Refusal to Back Russian Action
(AFP, Aug. 28, 2008) The United States on
Thursday welcomed China's apparent reluctance to support Russia's action
recognizing the independence of two Georgian secessionist regions. Meanwhile, AFP reported
that Russia Claims China Backing
in Georgia Conflict.
Medvedev Seeks China’s Support
on Recognizing Regions
(Bloomberg, Aug. 27,
2008) Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev met his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao
today, seeking support from Russia's biggest Asian ally for its recognition
of two breakaway Georgian regions. China “Concerned” of
Situation in South Ossetia, Abkhazia Xinhau
cited Chinese FM spokesman.
China Draws the Line at
Support for Secessionism By Christopher Bodeen (AP, Sep. 7, 2008) Moscow’s
recognition of the rebel regions of South Ossetia
and Abkhazia has tweaked Chinese anxieties about independence movements in
its restive western regions of Tibet
and Xinjiang, as well as Taiwan, said June Teufel Dreyer.
China Still On-side with
Russia By Yu Bin
(Asia Times,
Sep. 6, 2008) For many in the West, China's cautious "neutrality" is
a departure from, if not a betrayal of, its strategic partnership with
Russia. Such a view, among others, misreads the state of the Sino-Russian
relationship without an adequate understanding of its depth, breadth and
complexity.
Beijing’s Perspectives on
the Russo-Georgian Conflict: Dilemma and Choices By Jing Huang (China Brief,
Jamestown Foundation, Sep. 3, 2008) Beijing’s
ambiguous silence on the Russo-Georgian conflict and its aftermath reveals a
dilemma that is caused by the increasing incompatibility between Beijing’s commitment to
external peace and its coercive effort to maintain internal stability under
the rule of the CCP.
Georgia’s Lessons for Taiwan By Jeffrey Bader and Douglas Paal
(Far Eastern Economic Review, September 2008)
Americans and Europeans are not the only ones who have been watching with
interest. In Asia—particularly Taiwan—people
are wondering what events in the Caucasus
may portend about their own security.
Shanghai Cooperation Organization Split on Georgia By Antoaneta Bezlova (Inter Press Service, Sep. 2, 2008) Chinese analysts say two
other reasons underpinned Beijing’s decision to withhold its unequivocal
support to Russia; its desire to avoid any anti-western flourishes, and its
fear that Georgia conflict may come to play as a prelude to another long-term
stand off between Russia and the west.
Russia’s Isolation Plays
into China’s Hands
(AP, Aug. 30, 2008) A summit in
the region held signs that China,
already a powerful regional player, will benefit from concerns about an
aggressive Russia.
China Cannot Back Russia in
Georgia Crisis: Analysts
(AFP, Aug. 29, 2008) China will not endorse
Russia in its battle with the West over the Georgia crisis but cannot say so
publicly for fear of upsetting Moscow, political analysts say.
China Plays It Cool on
Russia’s Escapade in George By Jonathan Manthorpe (Vancouver Sun, Aug. 22, 2008) China
has too much at stake to be flippant. Not only are there the issues of Tibet
and the majority Muslim Uigher province of Xinjiang, but also in its claim to the island nation of
Taiwan and scores of disputed islands in the South China and East China seas.
Georgia on China’s Mind By Muhammad Cohen
(Guardian, Aug. 20, 2008) To avoid a replay, the US need to show Taiwan
and China
that it wants to be a dependable friend to each, but that friendship depends
on following the rules. That means Russia
and Georgia
both have to pay a price for their misadventure in the Caucuses. Otherwise, Taiwan
will pay a far bigger one.
China’s Georgia War Lesson:
Today’s Breakaway Bites back Later By Viola Gienger and Dune Lawrence (Bloomberg, Aug. 19, 2008) Is this a precedent for intervention
that could be used to keep Taiwan out of China or separate Tibet from China?
This dispute could cut either way for the Chinese, and so the safest thing to
do is to remain silent.
China Seeks Caucasian Crisis
Windfall By M K Bhadrakumar
(Asia Times, Aug. 19, 2008) The reverberations of
the conflict in the Caucasus are beginning
to be felt. We may be unwittingly bidding farewell to the "war on
terror". In any case, the international community has lost interest in
Osama bin Laden.
The Drums of Change By Harold Meyerson
(Washington
Post, Aug. 13, 2008) On or about last Friday, the world changed. With two
very different coming-out parties -- the opening ceremonies of the Olympics
and the invasion of Georgia.
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