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Republic of Georgia official seeks to increase support for U.S. in Iraq
ATLANTA — At a time when allied backing for the war in Iraq seems to be slowly eroding, at least one member of the coalition wants to significantly increase its support. The Republic of Georgia, which has 159 soldiers in Iraq as part of the U.S.-led coalition, wants to send about 700 more, the country's defense minister said Wednesday. "Although we have our own problems, the United States was there for us when we needed help and now when [the United States] needs help we are not going to hide in the bushes," Giorgi Baramidze said during a visit to Atlanta. But in order to increase that support, Baramidze said, his country will require additional resources from the United States to bolster its fledgling military in its battles against separatist insurgents in the Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions. He will meet Friday with U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to press his case. "Every taxpayer dollar spent in [the Republic of] Georgia for the military is well-spent," he said. "We consider ourselves a small but very strategic part of America's war on terrorism." Baramidze, 36, was visiting Georgia National Guard leaders and touring facilities as part of an ongoing effort to modernize his country's armed forces. The Georgia Guard and Republic of Georgia have had a close relationship since 1995. The Guard has done numerous humanitarian missions in the former Soviet state and also has provided technical support for eight Huey helicopters the country purchased from the United States. In addition, the Guard is providing Georgian military leaders advice on moving away from the Soviet-model force structure to one that is considered more of an American model with active, reserve and National Guard troops. Regular Army Special Forces soldiers have provided military-to-military training in Georgia that Baramidze credited with helping ease a problem of terrorists using an area of Georgia known as the Pankisi Gorge as a resupply route and rest area from the fighting in neighboring Chechnya. Baramidze, who has held the job as defense minister for less than a year, served as an engineer in the Soviet military from 1986 to 1988. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union and Georgia's independence he joined the Georgian military and later served in Parliament. The forced resignation of longtime Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze in January and the election of President Mikheil Saakashvili has provided the country with new hope, Baramidze said. The economy has rebounded and the deep-seated corruption that was a legacy of the Soviet dictatorship is being stamped out, he added. "We have a surplus [in the budget] for the first time in our history and will be able to pay the pensioners [retirees] for the first time," Baramidze said. A stronger economy will mean improvements in salaries and living conditions for the 15,000-strong Georgia military, but Baramidze said he believes that could exacerbate already bad relations with Russia. He charged that Russia is fueling the separatist insurgencies in Abkhazia and South Ossetia because it does not want a strong and independent Georgia. "Russia sees [these insurgencies] as potential leverage to have control over the Georgian government because Georgia is the gateway for the Caucasus," he said. Georgia is slated to become a major transshipment point for oil in the Caucasus and Turkey with two pipelines through the country. The construction and maintenance of those pipelines are expected to provide long-term economic security for Georgia. |
