Georgia-Russian Cease Fire Agreement Signed

The Georgians and Russians have signed the latest cease fire agreement. The real question is whether it will be worth the paper it's printed on, since the Russians continue to occupy Georgian territory outside South Ossetia and have no intention of doing anything other than oversee the breakup of Georgia.

A grim Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili said Friday he signed a cease-fire agreement that requires the immediate withdrawal of all Russian forces from Georgian soil.
Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili announces Friday he signed a cease-fire agreement with Russia.

The agreement includes a provision for independent monitors and an eventual reconstruction plan for Georgia's economy, said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who brought the documents to Tbilisi.

The two had met for almost five hours, the Georgian president said.

Saakashvili opened the news conference with a long, bitter tirade against European nations' appeasement in the face of a Russian invasion last week.

In many respects, the situation is little different than the Palestinian war against Israel and the repeated cease fires, which are little more than strategic pauses designed to give the Palestinians a break to regroup and rearm. Here, the Russians have yet to remove their troops from Georgian territory, and military operations continue despite the claim that a cease fire is in effect.

Meanwhile, in no coincidence, the US signed a deal with Poland to station an anti-ballistic missile system in Poland yesterday, which has ticked off the Russians, who consider that a provocation. Again, the Russians think that nations defending themselves against Russian aggression is a provocation.