Georgia's Big Democracy Lie

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The missile attacks on South Ossetian towns that Tbilisi started on Aug. 7 have had catastrophic consequences. Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili showed the entire world his ruthless aggression and violence against the Ossetians. The Georgian government committed acts of genocide against civilians in South Ossetia, and it violated fundamental principles of human rights and international law.

This conflict is truly a tragedy -- not only for Ossetians but also for Georgia itself, which is desperately trying to find its place in the world. It has become clear from this war that Georgia is prepared to undertake any -- even illegitimate and illegal -- actions, as long as it has the moral and political support of those Western powers that see Georgia as one of their key outposts in the 21st-century Great Game for energy resources and geopolitical influence.

In addition, it is a tragedy for global cooperation on important issues, such as nuclear nonproliferation, the struggle against global terrorism, the environment, energy, industrial security and the fight against AIDS and infectious diseases. To effectively address these pressing issues, there must be an atmosphere of trust and cooperation. Tbilisi's unprovoked aggression last week is not conducive to this.

This war is also a tragedy for the international legal system. While Georgia declares its adherence to democratic values in words, it violates international law by its destructive and aggressive conduct. And this is contributing to the increasingly negative reaction in global capitals against Georgia, although Tbilisi blinds itself to this reality. It strives to be a member of the Western bloc by parroting U.S. catchwords, such as "democratic solidarity" or "a club of democracies," that have no relevance whatsoever to Georgia.

The West has spent a lot of time, energy and money to teach Georgia the tricks of the trade in global public relations and to make the country look like a democracy. But we and many other nations see through this deceit. We understand that the seditious tactics of the so-called color revolutions are a real threat to international law and the source of global legal nihilism. Russia will always speak out against these destabilizing trends because it defends international law, as demonstrated by the country's peacekeeping operations in South Ossetia and Abkhazia. We also support bringing the United Nations into the region to make the peacekeeping effort truly global.

President Dmitry Medvedev's proposal to introduce a legally binding European security treaty, which he first introduced in a speech he gave in Berlin in early June, and to convene a pan-European summit make more sense now than ever before. To turn Medvedev's ideas into reality, Russia must work with politicians, lawmakers, diplomats, the general public and the media. We can reach mutual understanding only if the whole truth about events in the Georgian-South Ossetian conflict zone becomes clear and if the global community censures Georgia's acts of aggression and genocide.

Russia must be able to work constructively with other nations, even those that have Russophobic tendencies. The Federation Council must contribute to this process. Among other things, we must clearly articulate our position on Georgia, regional security in the Caucasus and peacekeeping in the region. We need to turn to our partners -- the United States, France, Germany and other European Union members, as well as NATO -- with an appeal to act impartially, rationally and for the welfare of the common interests of building peace.

Vasily Likhachev, formerly Russia's ambassador and permanent representative to the European Union in Brussels, is the deputy chairman of the International Affairs Committee in the Federation Council.