Former US Commander Ben Hodges: what's happening in Ukraine is continuation of what started in Georgia in 2008
US President Joe Biden spoke of his country's unwavering support to Ukraine after his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday, however, he did not mention Georgia in this regard. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge archive
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Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, a former commanding general of the United States Army Europe, has tweeted that what is happening in Ukraine now ‘is a continuation of what started in Georgia in 2008’.
Hodges has responded to Luke Coffey, the Director of the Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies at The Heritage Foundation, who has expressed his concern that the US and Russian presidents - Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin - have not mentioned Georgia at the press conferences following their meeting in Geneva, Switzerland yesterday.
Russia stops only when they are stopped. What's happening in Ukraine now is a continuation of what started in Georgia in 2008. President Biden said he'd know in 3-6 months what sort of dialog he'd have with President Putin. He's on the clock... https://t.co/Aaxx2DMO50
— Ben Hodges (@general_ben) June 17, 2021
Calling on Georgia’s friends in the West 'to work harder at getting Russia’s occupation of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali back onto the international agenda', Luke Coffey underscored that 20% of Georgia is occupied.
Almost unbelievable that Georgia was not mentioned once in either the Putin or Biden press conferences", has tweeted.
Former US Ambassador to Russia in 2012-2014, Michael McFaul shares the same concern:
This is what happens when we in the West forget about the past and just focus on the future. In the last Biden-Putin mtg 10 years ago, Georgia was the major topic. Now, no one is discussing occupation. Worry about a similar fate for Crimea. #NeverForget . https://t.co/oVAl4SfET0
— Michael McFaul (@McFaul) June 16, 2021
During his press conference following the meeting with his Russian counterpart, the US President Joe Biden said he had 'communicated the United States’ unwavering commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine'.
However, he did not mention Georgia and its Russian-occupied regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) in his press remarks.
The UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution initiated by Georgia and co-sponsored by 57 other countries which condemns the demographic changes in Georgian regions due to the Russian occupation of Georgian territories and calls for the dignified and safe return of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and refugees to their homes.
Georgian citizen Lasha Khetereli, who was illegally detained by the occupation forces close to the Russian-occupied Georgian region of Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) a year ago, has been released.
The European Union says it will continue to raise Russia’s consistent breaches of international law in Ukraine, Georgia, and elsewhere prominently, including through initiatives with like-minded partners.
The United States and the EU say in a joint statement released following the June 14 NATO summit that they will support the reform path of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova. “We resolve to work towards long-term peace, resilience and stability in the South Caucasus,” said the statement which is composed of 36 notes, with two notes about Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova. The statement has condemned ‘Russia's continued actions to undermine Ukraine’s and Georgia's sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence’.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko says that the release of illegally detained Georgian citizens Zaza Gakheladze, Irakli Bebua and others in the Georgian Russian-occupied Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) and Abkhazia regions ‘is not up to us.’ “The issue should be resolved by Georgia and the Abkhaz and South Ossetian governments,” Rudenko said yesterday, during the 53rd round of the Geneva International Discussions on Georgian conflict issues.