It's not our fight: Bluntly put, Georgia doesn't matter By Doug Bandow

Today the United States and its European allies should be pleased that the country of Georgia is not a member of NATO, as desired by President George W. Bush. If so, we might be preparing for war with Russia.

Allied officials have been breathing fire at Moscow for months for confronting Georgia, which won its independence from the dissolving Soviet Union in 1991. At issue: the status of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, two territories within Georgia that have declared their independence in turn.

Such an arcane territorial dispute between two former parts of the Soviet Union over the disposition of two even smaller parts doesn't concern the United States, or even Europe.

Georgia was forced into the Russian empire in 1801. The collapse of communist rule in the Soviet Union led to Georgia's declaration of independence in 1991. This all was of little concern to America and Europe. However, Georgia has consistently sought U.S. and European support in resisting Russian encroachments. As a result, Georgia wants to join NATO. The idea is nutty on its face. Georgia is irrelevant to allied security and brings few military assets to the table. Most important, including Georgia in NATO would force the alliance to take Georgia's side against Russia in any territorial disputes. Such as in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Separatism in both territories led to fighting and ceasefires, backed by Russian peacekeeping forces, in the early 1990s. Now the dispute has flared into war, with Georgia's attempt at a blitzkrieg takeover of South Ossetia and Russia's intervention to defend the latter. These are nasty little conflicts to be sure, but of no consequence to the West.

First, neither side is obviously right. As the United States and leading European nations recently decided for Kosovo, secession can be a valid demand. Second, outside involvement in otherwise internal struggles is a constant of international relations. Indeed, given Georgia's proximity to Russia, Moscow has far more at stake in the future of Abkhazia and South Ossetia than Washington had in Kosovo.

The United States and Europeans should tell Russia that it is wrong and move on. Put bluntly, Georgia doesn't matter. Many Georgians thirst for real liberty, but their country doesn't matter to Western security. Abkhazia and South Ossetia aren't even critical to Georgia.

Does that mean that small states stuck in a "bad neighborhood," such as Georgia, might face unpleasant pressure at times? Yes. But it is not America's – or Europe's – duty to right every wrong, especially when doing so interferes with the ability to achieve more important objectives elsewhere.

The principle duty of the U.S. government is to protect America – its people, liberties, constitutional system and territory. America's leaders should focus on the interests of their own political community rather than plan crusades on behalf of other countries to slay imagined monsters around the globe.

From OC Register
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/georgia-states-ossetia-2121525-south-...