It is pointless trying to resolve the problems of the Caucasus region by force. It has been tried often enough, and each time with disastrous results for the aggressor. A legally binding non-aggression treaty is essential, but Saakashvili has repeatedly refused to sign one. It is now clear why. If the West were to facilitate the adoption of such an agreement it would be a good deed well done. If it chooses a different course, condemns Russia and re-arms Georgia (which some American officials are already suggesting), a new crisis is inevitable that will have even worse consequences.
In recent days, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and indeed President Bush, have been threatening to isolate Russia. American politicians talk about excluding our country from the G8, closing down the NATO-Russia Council, and blocking our membership of the World Trade Organization. These are empty threats. In Russia, the question is in any case being asked what use all these institutions are to us if our opinion is simply ignored. Just to sit round a well-laid table and be lectured at?
The reality is that, in recent years, Russia has been confronted with one fait accompli after another: this is what we are doing about Kosovo; now we are withdrawing from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and deploying anti-missile systems in your neighbouring countries; now we are continuing to endlessly expand NATO. Live with it! And all that to the accompaniment of a lot of sweet talk about ‘partnership’ that is no more than a smokescreen. Who is going to put up with that sort of thing?
There are calls now in the United States for a ‘review’ of relations with Russia. I think the first thing in need of review is this way of talking down to Russia, ignoring her views and interests. Our countries are well able to develop a serious agenda for cooperation, in deeds rather than just in words. I believe many Americans and many Russians know that. It is time for the politicians to catch up.
A Bipartisan Commission on US Policy towards Russia has recently been established under the co-chairmanship of former Senator Gary Hart and Senator Chuck Hagel. Its members include some influential people and, judging by its published mandate, they understand what Russia is and how important it is to build a constructive relationship with her.
The Commission has stated that it will produce recommendations ‘to advance American national interests effectively in relations with Russia’. If they think only about that, no good will come of the initiative. If, however, they take account of the interests of their partner, common security interests, and add the necessary dose of sober realism, the way may be opened to rebuilding trust and worthwhile cooperation.
Needless to say, I could hardly turn down an invitation from my old friend Larry King, the most authoritative American talk show host. I greatly appreciated his willingness to give me an opportunity of replying to the flood of lies and accusations being made against Russia. I naturally expressed my arguments more emotionally in the interview than in articles for the press and, to judge by the many responses it produced, that made an impression on his viewers.
Here, for example, is a letter from Mark Steven Ritter:
Dear Mr. Gorbachev,
I have just read your article in the Washington Post and last night watched your interview on Larry King’s talk show. I want to thank you for giving a clear and considered assessment of the situation in Georgia and South Ossetia.
Despite what the main US media are saying, people in the West cannot be fooled by this constant demonizing of Russia. We understand that President Saakashvili started this conflict. I was also amazed that the United States managed to provide assistance to Georgia faster than to its own nationals after Hurricane Katrina.
As you told Larry King, we had an opportunity after the Cold War to reduce military spending worldwide, which would have brought peace, stability and trust. Instead, the US military budget has increased to unprecedented levels, which has given impetus to a new arms race and jeopardized the safety of the whole world.
Here are some more comments:
Mr. Gorbachev has offered up a wise and reasoned perspective on the complexities of the region. He has also laid out a plausible way to peacefully resolve this crisis.
We should listen to this Nobel Peace Prize Laureate! Instead of with guns, let’s arm ourselves with knowledge and stand strong for peace.
Again:
I admit to being a great admirer of Mikhail Gorbachev, and I join with those who congratulate the Washington Post for carrying this very important piece.
I also thought the abolition of autonomy for South Ossetia was a classic blunder and that Georgia should have carefully considered the merits of the federation solution Gorbachev proposed.
Also:
‘Mikheil Saakashvili was expecting unconditional support from the West, and the West had given him reason to think he would have it.’ Who really started all this remains unclear, but if the Georgians thought that America would pull their chestnuts out of the fire, then more fool they.
I particularly valued a letter from former US Ambassador to the USSR, Jack F. Matlock:
I understand that President Gorbachev will be speaking in Philadelphia on September 17 when he receives an award. Unfortunately, I will be unable to attend the ceremony because of a commitment in California that day.
We are appalled at the way the press is handling the current confrontation between Georgia and Russia. President Gorbachev’s interviews and op-ed articles have been important in drawing attention to the events of 1990–91, which lie at the root of much that has happened.
I hope we can all work together to bring some sanity to the current international situation. Just when I had the feeling that we could soon move in the right direction on the nuclear issues, the situation in Georgia has intruded to make that difficult.[3]
Two weeks after the conflict, Russia recognized the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Was that the best solution in the circumstances? I had serious doubts at the time and still have today. It will now be even more difficult to find a solution to the political problem in Transcaucasia, but I can only repeat what I said then: responsibility for the tragic events of August 2008 and all their consequences lies with the then president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, and those who knowingly or unwittingly encouraged him to seek a military solution.
Ordeal by global crisis
Russia, and not only she, was soon to face another test of her resolve, a global financial crisis. When it broke, I was in the United States at the invitation of former President George Bush Sr. Literally on the day before I was to be awarded the 2008 Liberty Medal of the National Constitution Center, which he headed, news broke of the collapse of the Lehman Brothers financial services firm. It was not immediately clear that this was the beginning of a catastrophic collapse, but within two or three days the authorities and ordinary Americans realized that things were bad. It was perhaps the first time the Americans so openly shared their anxieties with us. Moreover, almost everyone pinned responsibility and their hopes on the state, or, as they say in America, the government. President George W. Bush had to cast aside neo-liberal dogma that ‘the market will regulate everything’ and agree with those insisting on emergency government intervention to prevent a collapse of the banking system.
We returned home in anxious mood. Ten years after the 1998 default, the Russian economy was facing a financial tsunami, which this time came not from Asia but from the very heart of the global financial system. It was certain to affect Russia.
3
Jack F. Matlock Jr., Letter, 12 September 2008. Website of the Gorbachev Foundation; http://www.gorby.ru/en/presscenter/news/show_26114/. Accessed 21 August 2015.