Eric Hoesli, Valdai Club expert shares his opinion about latest Hague´s assesment of Russia´s combat operation in Georgia in August 2008.
"The Hague Courts decision not to consider the Georgian request about events related to the war in South Ossetia in 2008 is yet another setback for Georgia. In any case, an International Court of Justice verdict would not have made much difference. The courts consideration of this case would just have been an additional factor, on top of the investigations already undertaken, especially the one lead by the European Unions Council, the findings of which were published as a report in September 2009 (full title: Report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Conflict in Georgia). This European Report, also known as the Tagliavini Report, has already established and attributed the main burden of responsibilities as to the origin and consequences of the conflict, incriminating the Georgian government for triggering it and denouncing the human rights violations and the crimes committed subsequently against Georgian minorities in South Ossetia. Politically and diplomatically, any International Court verdict would not have offered a new perspective on this issue. It would not have been a watershed moment, unlike, say, the International Court of Justices verdict on the legality of Kosovos declaration of independence.
Both President Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin made no secret of the fact that to them Saakashvili was the decisive element in their countries dispute. The Georgian presidents aggressive attitude, his personal alliances with Bush era hawks and the most bellicose members of the American establishment combined to turn him into the Kremlins bête noire. So great has this effect been, that it is hard now to conceive of relations between Georgia and Russia returning to normal (even if it were in both states interest) so long as he remains in power. There would need to be another leader in Tbilisi for discussions to get underway about such complex issues as borders and territorial status in the region."
Full vercion of his article was originally published on valdaiclub.com
"The Hague Courts decision not to consider the Georgian request about events related to the war in South Ossetia in 2008 is yet another setback for Georgia. In any case, an International Court of Justice verdict would not have made much difference. The courts consideration of this case would just have been an additional factor, on top of the investigations already undertaken, especially the one lead by the European Unions Council, the findings of which were published as a report in September 2009 (full title: Report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Conflict in Georgia). This European Report, also known as the Tagliavini Report, has already established and attributed the main burden of responsibilities as to the origin and consequences of the conflict, incriminating the Georgian government for triggering it and denouncing the human rights violations and the crimes committed subsequently against Georgian minorities in South Ossetia. Politically and diplomatically, any International Court verdict would not have offered a new perspective on this issue. It would not have been a watershed moment, unlike, say, the International Court of Justices verdict on the legality of Kosovos declaration of independence.
Both President Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin made no secret of the fact that to them Saakashvili was the decisive element in their countries dispute. The Georgian presidents aggressive attitude, his personal alliances with Bush era hawks and the most bellicose members of the American establishment combined to turn him into the Kremlins bête noire. So great has this effect been, that it is hard now to conceive of relations between Georgia and Russia returning to normal (even if it were in both states interest) so long as he remains in power. There would need to be another leader in Tbilisi for discussions to get underway about such complex issues as borders and territorial status in the region."
Full vercion of his article was originally published on valdaiclub.com
