Georgia's joining NATO to cause geopolitical divisionJuly 16, 2008 - 17:13 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Georgia's joining NATO will cause geopolitical division, with further split of Georgia and the entire region, a Russian expert said."It is well known that neither Abkhazia nor South Ossetia intends to join NATO and, what is more, Mikheil Saakashvili is not going to seek their consent," Mikhail Alexandrov, head of the Caucasus department at Moscow's Institute for Commonwealth of Independent States, told a news conference in Yerevan. "It's premature to speak of Russia's recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia's independence. As to the other unrecognized republics, namely Nagorno Karabakh and Transnistria, I think Armenia should be the first to recognize Karabakh. Although, reaction of Azerbaijan and international community should be taken into account," he said. The expert did not rule out that Georgia's President can plunge into a military adventure. Comparing Georgia to Germany in 1939, Alexandrov said, "No one believed that Hitler will attack the Soviet Union but it happened. Actually, subversive-terrorist war against Russian peacekeepers is going on in South Ossetia and its consequences are unpredictable." Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |