Around Russia

The results of the week. You yourself must decide

July 24, 2009 Alexander Golts

To proclaim some correct and noble principles is one thing, but to try to realize these principles into life is something completely different. I believe that US Vice President Joseph Biden thought more than once or twice about it during his visit to Ukraine and Georgia. A couple of weeks ago, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a program speech about the foreign policy of the Obama administration. Without abandoning the idea of ​​the world leadership of America, Clinton at the same time clearly indicated that this leadership would be achieved in other ways than before: “Our approach to foreign policy should reflect the world that it is now, and not what it was before. Attempts to apply in the current conditions the idea of ​​the “concert of the great powers” ​​of the 19th century or the strategy of the 20th century power balance are meaningless. We cannot return to the principle of restraining the time of the Cold War or to the Concept of Utletarism ( this unusable word is called a situation when the state makes a decision without any consultations with other countries - A.G. ). ” Instead, the White House offers something else - instead of a multi -pool world (where each of the great powers, surrounding itself with satellites, is opposed by other great powers - this is how foreign policy in Moscow is seen), it is necessary to create a “multi -partner world”, where the most different countries are united in coalitions in order to solve all problems that are important for them.

Guided precisely by such an approach, Biden went to Kyiv and Tbilisi. From the very beginning of the trip, two of her main goals were declared. It is clear and clearly to make it clear that, firstly, the “reboot” of relations with Russia will not occur at the expense of Ukraine and Georgia, whose desire in the Euro-Atlantic community caused the rage of the Kremlin. And, secondly, that, supporting the desire for democracy, Washington does not at all want to play the role of the supreme judge in internal conflicts in these states. In the same way, foreign policy decisions, such as decisions on joining NATO, should only be made only by the peoples of Ukraine and Georgia.

As the starting Biden insisted in both the Ukrainian and Georgian capital these three mantras: the United States reject the division of peace into zones of life interests, are not going to create such in the post -Soviet space, but they do not believe that Moscow has the right to apply for such a zone; Ukraine and Georgia “must decide for themselves” - not only without Moscow, but also without Washington - which organizations to enter and what policy to pursue; The leaders of independent countries are direct responsibility for the domestic political situation, Washington is expecting from them responsible actions aimed not at destruction, but to protect democracy.

One trouble: it seems that none of those to whom Joe Biden sent his messages did not believe him. It is not surprising that they did not believe in Moscow, where they plan to foreign policies according to the Real Politik schemes of the 19th century: still, the insidious Americans came to cheer up their “Trojan horses” in the post-Soviet space. And at the same time, Russian requirements are ignored to take into account the “regional context of relations, civilizational-historical specifics and the prevailing cultural and integration traditions” (that is, the requirement to consider the post-Soviet space with a zone of Russian “privileged interests”, as Dmitry Medvedev demanded a year ago).

The problem is that the beacons of democracy, like Yushchenko, Tymoshenko and Saakashvili, think in the same coordinate system. The bosses do not sincerely understand why the first deputy. The main overseas boss, on the one hand, does not hide irritation and talks about the paralysis of power in Ukraine, and on the other, does not give money to anyone and does not call his chosen one. Instead, everything repeats about the need to make difficult decisions (which, judging by Biden, is that all Kyiv leaders need to agree and at least somehow keep the country from paralysis). And at the same time, everything repeats “yourself, themselves” instead of distributing to all sisters in earrings. The degree of overvoltage of the Ukrainian elite, who was strongly read by certain secret signs, consisting in Biden's speeches, is evidenced by the text written by the Kyiv correspondent of the respected Moscow newspaper. The article in all seriousness reports that the vice-president of the United States took the side of Viktor Yushchenko in the intra-Ukrainian conflict and refused the support of Yulia Tymoshenko. This conclusion was drawn on the grounds that Biden was quite harshly criticized by the Ukrainian “government”. The correspondent decided that Biden had in mind the Tymoshenkovsky Cabinet of Ministers. Meanwhile, any freshman-choroshist should be known that the English word Government has another broader meaning-the leadership of the country as a whole. And from the context of Biden’s speech, it is quite obvious that his reproaches are directed to the entire Ukrainian leadership - the president, the prime minister, and the leaders of the parliament. But the mentality of the post -Soviet elite is such that it longs for a paragraph of the pointer and, not seeing clear signals, invents them.

However, what was in Ukraine is pure flowers compared to the reception provided by the vice president in Georgia.

Mikhail Saakashvili perfectly understood that Biden would necessarily express support to the country, the third of which was actually annexed (and Bayden endlessly repeated that the United States supported Georgia in every possible way). It was a sin not to take advantage of this situation so as not to extract specific political benefits.

Georgian citizens greeted Biden when he followed the avenue to them. J. Bush (what looked like some tactlessness, but, damn it, too often these Yankees change their bosses ”). And the text of the posters who met the vice president (“We are counting on you”, “Do not forget us”, “You are our only hope”, “We are punished for love for freedom”), forced to recall the Georgian politics, which thirty years ago flatterly stated that the sun rises in the north, then in Russia. The difference, as it turns out, is not so great - it is enough to say that now, due to the changed circumstances, the sun for Georgia rises in the West.

At the same time, Saakashvili (like Shevardnadze at one time) tried to manipulate high authorities. Surely on the very eve of the visit, the Georgian president told Washington Post that he would take advantage of Biden’s visit to speed up the already conducted negotiations on the supply of Georgia of American anti -tank weapons and air defense systems. And before that, Georgian ministers told that soon Americans will join the EU observers in the conflict zone. Everything, they say, is practically already decided.

Immediately, as I suspect, I calculated Saakashvili, murmured Moscow. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Grigory Karasin recalled that Russia will “limit or stop” any military cooperation with the country supplying Georgian weapons. The signal is extremely frank - you will begin to supply Saakashvili weapons, and the air transit you need to Afghanistan will end without starting.

And Biden instantly ended up. It was impossible to directly refute everything specified by the Georgian masters from head to toe, as a patho, awarded the senior order from head to toe. But it was also impossible not to react in any way-the Escapades of Saakashvili are threatened to complete the entire Russian-American reboot. And the anonymous, but extremely high -ranking representative of the administration, who said through his teeth, was sent to journalists: "Biden promised nothing regarding military assistance." But, one way or another, it turns out that Saakashvili used Biden. The Georgian president too literally understood the call to solve everything himself. The multi -partner world certainly does not work.

Photos of RIA Novosti and President.gov.ua/ru