Israel backs Georgia in Caspian Oil Pipeline Battle with Russia
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report
August 8, 2008
Georgian tanks and infantry, aided by Israeli military advisers, captured the capital of breakaway South Ossetia, Tskhinvali, early Friday, Aug. 8, bringing the Georgian-Russian conflict over the province to a military climax.
Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin threatened a “military response.”
Former Soviet Georgia called up its military reserves after Russian warplanes bombed its new positions in the renegade province.
In Moscow’s first response to the fall of Tskhinvali, president Dimitry Medvedev ordered the Russian army to prepare for a national emergency after calling the UN Security Council into emergency session early Friday.
Reinforcements were rushed to the Russian “peacekeeping force” present in the region to support the separatists.
Georgian tanks entered the capital after heavy overnight heavy aerial strikes, in which dozens of people were killed.
Lado Gurgenidze, Georgia's prime minister, said on Friday that Georgia will continue its military operation in South Ossetia until a "durable peace" is reached. "As soon as a durable peace takes hold we need to move forward with dialogue and peaceful negotiations."
DEBKAfile’s geopolitical experts note that on the surface level, the Russians are backing the separatists of S. Ossetia and neighboring Abkhazia as payback for the strengthening of American influence in tiny Georgia and its 4.5 million inhabitants. However, more immediately, the conflict has been sparked by the race for control over the pipelines carrying oil and gas out of the Caspian region.
The Russians may just bear with the pro-US Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili’s ambition to bring his country into NATO. But they draw a heavy line against his plans and those of Western oil companies, including Israeli firms, to route the oil routes from Azerbaijan and the gas lines from Turkmenistan, which transit Georgia, through Turkey instead of hooking them up to Russian pipelines.
Saakashvili need only back away from this plan for Moscow to ditch the two provinces’ revolt against Tbilisi. As long as he sticks to his guns, South Ossetia and Abkhazia will wage separatist wars.
DEBKAfile discloses Israel’s interest in the conflict from its exclusive military sources:
Jerusalem owns a strong interest in Caspian oil and gas pipelines reach the Turkish terminal port of Ceyhan, rather than the Russian network. Intense negotiations are afoot between Israel Turkey, Georgia, Turkmenistan and Azarbaijan for pipelines to reach Turkey and thence to Israel’s oil terminal at Ashkelon and on to its Red Sea port of Eilat. From there, supertankers can carry the gas and oil to the Far East through the Indian Ocean.
Aware of Moscow’s sensitivity on the oil question, Israel offered Russia a stake in the project but was rejected.
Last year, the Georgian president commissioned from private Israeli security firms several hundred military advisers, estimated at up to 1,000, to train the Georgian armed forces in commando, air, sea, armored and artillery combat tactics. They also offer instruction on military intelligence and security for the central regime. Tbilisi also purchased weapons, intelligence and electronic warfare systems from Israel.
These advisers were undoubtedly deeply involved in the Georgian army’s preparations to conquer the South Ossetian capital Friday.
In recent weeks, Moscow has repeatedly demanded that Jerusalem halt its military assistance to Georgia, finally threatening a crisis in bilateral relations. Israel responded by saying that the only assistance rendered Tbilisi was “defensive.”
This has not gone down well in the Kremlin. Therefore, as the military crisis intensifies in South Ossetia, Moscow may be expected to punish Israel for its intervention.
The Zionists/CIA sure know how to provoke things!
The event in Georgia is a very smart way of keeping the Russians "busy" in the Caucasus, while the US/Israel prepares for an Iranian attack.
Do not to underestimate the region in terms of geopolitical importance because the US & Russia are BATTLING for a control of the region and both sides have a lot in stake in the Caucasus. As of today, the region, which is composed of the newly independent republics of Azerbaijan, Armenia & Georgia are controlled by Moscow & Washington. Armenia is the only ally of Russia, while Georgia is the ally of Washington along with Azerbaijan, although Azerbaijan plays more of a balancing role due to the presence of Western oil companies within its borders. This conflict can expand throughout the region within days. Another breakaway region in Georgia, Abkhazia, is on high alert and might strike at the Georgian army within hours, which will escalate the conflict.
This conflict was very well planned, although I think that the Georgians are hoping that the US is going to come to its rescue now by sending US envoy in the region. Also, an attack on Iran in the near future is inevitable as far as I a concerned now, so they are trying to keep Russian hands tied with something else.
In addition, the Western media coverage of the event today was nothing but propaganda without exposing the real reason behind the fighting. The media presented the conflict as if it's a Georgian vs Russian conflict and the Russians are either 'bombarding" the helpless Georgians, or the Russians have 'invaded' Georgia,while there's not mention of the number one key player in all of this, which is the conflict between the South Ossetsians and the Georgians within the Georgian border. The Russians mobilized AFTER the Georgians killed 10-12 Russian peace keepers in South Ossetian breakaway region. I did not hear one mention of the South Ossetians and using the ignorance of US public in terms of no knowledge of what is going on in other parts of the world, the media easily manipulated the incident as if the Russians are invading and murdering the helpless Georgians. The fact that the Georgian president, Mikhail Saakashvili had his 5 minutes of fame on CNN asking for Western assistance to Georgia and his dogmatic speech of democracy and liberty (among other BS that came out of his mounth) clearly shows that it was a staged 'performance' to the US public in order demonize Russia and show that 'look we are a small nation in transit, trying to build democratic principles into our society, but the Russian bullies are still not letting us live in peace".....the provocation came from the Georgian side, and everyone knows this except in the West. The Georgian president has been pushing some major Rssian buttons the past few years in regards to joining the NATO and later inviting the NATO under Russia's nose.
Let's hope that this situation stays the same because if it spreads, the Georgians and the Ossetians will be the minor players in this.