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As Georgia is Bombed, Bush Mis-speaks and UN
Council Meets, Verbeke Resurfaces
Byline: Matthew Russell Lee of
Inner City Press at the UN: News Analysis
UNITED NATIONS,
August 11 -- Amid conflicting
reports of Russian troops in Stalin's birthplace Gori, the UN Security
Council convened
on Monday afternoon at Georgia's request. Western diplomats said they
have
prepared a draft resolution that would force Russia to stop bombing.
Entering
the Chamber at 5 p.m. were the UN's American political chief Lynn
Pascoe,
charged with bias by Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin and the
just-appointed
UN envoy to Abkhazia, Jan Verbeke. His appearance was a surprise, given
that he
was only recently switched to Georgia from UN service in Lebanon, which
he left amid death
threats (click here
for Inner City Press' story on that).
Reporters
crowded around a television just outside the Chamber, to watch
President George
Bush announce that moves were afoot to overthrow Russia's president. While
it's assumed that he meant Georgia,
no questions were taken in the Rose Garden.
Here's hoping it's different outside the Security Council.
G.W. Bush and Ban Ki-moon, Russian accusations not shown
Outside the
UN's gate, protesters bearing Georgian red and white flags beckoned
reporters
to listen. There were no South Ossetians in sight. Spain's Ambassador
to the
UN, asked of a different in the drafting of the resolution between
condemnation
and concern said that it didn't matter. A Balkan diplomat pointed out
that from
all over the Caucuses, ex-combatants itching for a fight are headed
toward
South Ossetia, including from Kabardino-Balkaria, the latter name
apparently
referring to Bulgarian, the residents as a lost or break-away tribe.
CNN showed
footage from the Council's stakeout; reporters went and waved as if in
a
baseball stadium. Hi, Mom -- a variant of what the First Avenue
protesters were
saying.
Update of 6:03 p.m. -- UN sources
tell Inner City Press that Russia asked for the meeting to be private.
Mulet briefed about Abkhazia and the arrival of more CIS troops, which
he pointedly said did not violate the underlying Moscow agreements.
Lynn Pascoe said that the Georgian soldiers now flown home by the U.S.
were doing "middle ring" security in Iraq, and will be replaced by the
Multinational Force. Verbeke did not speak.
On the resolation, sources
tell Inner City Press that the U.S. dropped out of the drafting,
leaving a French-led version which the Europeans somehow think that
Russia will not veto. How the U.S. Mission will explain the draft's
weakness, given their thunderous rhetoric on Fox TV and in the Rose
Garden remains to be seen.
Watch
this
site. And this (on
South Ossetia), and
this --
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