APPEAL OF THE OSSETIANS TO THE GOVERNMENTS AND PEOPLES OT THE WORLD
(http://osetian.com/newsarchive/appeal.html)

More information (here is only limited space) on:
http://aglanceinestonia.cafebabel.com/en/

Helga, Tallinn, Estonia

I have always thought that american news are free and cover all the details but latest events showed it is far from the reality

Rick, Dallas, USA

Some food for thought: Why did the South Ossetians hold Russian passports? Why were they armed? Why didn't they accept any of the peace plans? In fact Russia seems to be quite content with the dead Ossetians and its peacekeepers. It was in their policy plans. They’ve done NOTHING to prevent it.

Irakli M., Tbilisi, Georgia

Suprisingly, there is one more winner - China. It didn't become a centre of evil, like Russia in western opinion and Georgia&USA in russian one. It didn't agree to live by duble standards, like all EU did (and, certainly, USA). Yet it showed the whole world the best show in history, a peaceful one.

Sergey, Moscow, Russia

Also now it is clear for everybody, that western "democracy" cares about lots of things, but not about killing 2000 people, including ill people in the hospital, women, children. I hope, my country will never be so democraric.

Sergey, Moscow, Russia

How would the US react if Russia joined hands with one of the US neighbor countries, helped a Russian loyalist to become its leader and then started putting Russian bases all along the US border. I think I know the answer: remember Cuban Crisis 1962? Do we need a better precedent? Kosovo maybe?

Stan, Amsterdam, Netherlands

John: "you dont just launch a major invasion through the mountains in 5 days"
Well, sometimes we do: remember the Balkans. And, anyway, many agree, that it would be stupid for RU not to be prepared for such a outbreak.
Anyway, it all is a grievous matter, no one's hands have stayed clean.

Vadim, Moscow, Russia

Saakashvili is just a pawn in US vs Russia big game. The same as the Ukraine's president. It is clear that US government is ready to pay human lifes (not only americans in Iraq) for their aim "to bring their own vision of democracy all over the world". They will fail I hope.

Dzmitry, Minsk, Belarus

The fact that Russia was definitely not ready for the PR-war (unlike Georgia) is a proof in itself of the "criminal" intent of the Georgian governemnt. They were preparing for this war. oncerning the freedom of press in Russia and in the West, now the Western media doesn't look so "free" & unbiassed

Kinean, Leiden, Netherlands

Thanks for your appropriate opinion. Nicely to see that in the present course of events. Today is official Day Of Mourning in Russia.

Alexander, Moscow, Russia

"If the Georgian Army had been as aggressive as its public relations campaign then the war for South Ossetia might have ended very differently."

Are joking? the review on PR is very weak I think. I hope some one will introduce better article about Russia versus Georgia information war.

Gedas, Kaunas, Lithuania

- After georgian for few hours bomb away city and kill more than 1.000 people mostly russian citizen, Russia don't have a choice.
Russia never profit by PR and never will.

Dmitry, Minsk, Belarus

I think that because of the number of people killed on their orders George W Bush, Vladimir Putin and Mikhail Saakashvili, all three of them, should be convicted by the Hague international tribunal. Neither of them cares much for human lives. But of this trio Putin looks the most convincing. Pity.

Alexander, Moscow, Russia

It's a shame for me, that my army was prepared for this jump and our diplomacy did nothing for prevent the war. They did know about soon attack for S.Osetia, but just ignore on the top of diplomacy.
Georgian people and Russian people are brothers, but Russian Gov. and Georgian Gov. are insane.

Yurij, Krasnoyarsk, Russia

In my opinion Georgia won in this war. Why?
South Ossetia is in ruins after first day of georgian attack, 2000 osetians are dead, 30 000 people run away from region. But Russia is agressor and Georgia is victim in opinion of West. Great show by Saakashvili. Stalin would be proud of the compatriot.

Vlad, Moscow, Russia

I agree that my homeland, Russia, is not a match to USA and its partners/satellites in mass-media wars. I'm amazed to find a media source in the UK, which has courage to stick to the facts, rather then use the stamped cliche, most Eastern media portals get used to.

Sergey V, Moscow, Russia

I think that Saakashvili complitely lost the war. Us siply set-up him...

Kostya, Kiev, Ukraine

It seems that real war is between Russia and USA. This schema has already becomes classical. USA has strong media advantage, biasing EU to it`s side. But other countries like Georgia let itself be like hands of USA politics. Wasington said, Tbilisi done.

Dmitry, Novosibirsk, Russia

This article proves that for many of you, westerners, the war is not about justice, care about human lives and rigths, but is a TV-show, and you judge by whose show was more impressive. Fairly, I do not care who won the paper war.

Zloy Tugarin, Moscow, Russia

Don't forget that Georgia started the attack, murdered 2000 people. Let this be your 1st message before analysing the situation.

Iouri, Volgograd, Russia

I think Russia lost this war in longterm distance. Not far from this day everybody will forget Georgia had been the real aggressor. But they will remember CNN's pictures about Russian tanks in Georgia made with Belgium PR's support. Georgia will be a NATO member with US troops.. So... Coming soon...

Andrey, Moscow, Russia

2Lou, Sydney, Australia. You can't go to the city which is being shelled and make pics. Lots of ppl just burnt off in the fires. Russians took the rest from the streets and put the rest into morgues. You don't really want to see this footage, it is not like fake Reuters/Georgia PR foto galleries.

Andrew, Stavanger, Norway

Saakashvili is a friend of Bush. There are instructors from US Army, training Georgians troops. Until now Georgia was the second biggest allay of Americans in Iraq, with 2000 troops. Dose anyone think Saakashvili will do something without American approval ?

Alex, Sofia,

2seva boston: US/EU monetary and weaponry to infuse georgian democracy, thanks on commenting on how it's started, most ppl still don't know

Anton, Moscow, Russia

there is some evidence that those picture are actually fakes made by Georgian government. If you can read Russian, you can search for the discussions in Livejournal and ru forums.
To Dmitriy Ivanovs:
then why did Russia moved the troops in AFTER Georgia attacked South Ossetia?

Igor, Novosibirsk, Russia

Thank you for revealing these facts concerning the Georgian PR activities. Not that it comes as a surprise (it remotely doesn't to anyone who actually listened to Mr.Saakashvili public speeches these days) but simply because true analysis like this are so scarce these days in British media. Bravo!

Michael, London,

Georgia started the war, Russia ended it - John from Glasgow is right. Russia has been always a winner, the History proved that several times. The ukrainians should think twice before acting... I hope they have brains...

Michel, Geneva,

I don't know what is translated on western TV, but breif look across western news-sites showed me that situation is not so awful as it seemed from Russia.
Here we thought, that nothing good is said to western peoples about our position. Now I see - a lot of people understand things in right way.

Ilya Volkov, Moscow, Russia

Over 2000 civillians have been killed, thousands more wounded, many elderly and children. Yet all thge pictures are of soldiers fighting solders. There were pictures of a dead grandmother and someone with a child, but these have dissappeared. If 2000 US died we would have pictures of everyone.

Lou, Sydney, Australia

Now all the word have whitnessed the real intentions of Russian government - they care neither of osteins, nor of abkhazs,they want to restore their influence on the ex USSR space, to change democrativcally elected regimes, to control energy supplies.
Luckily, they failed.and the truth is revealed.

Dmitriy Ivanovs, Riga, Latvia

I saw it on the TV when Saakashvili heard the terrible sound of many shoots and made a signal for his bodyguards to hide and save him from this "Russian attack". And later it was known that those shoots was Georgian attack. Saakashvili was terrified by his own troops!

Irina, Jõhvi, Estonia

Georgia started the war, the Russians ended it. Georgia is so intertwined with US & Israeli military (day before Georgia attacked; a joint military exercise finished between Georgia & the US), there are still hundreds of US & Israeli military advisors in Georgia. The US knew what Georgia was up to!

John, Glasgow, UK

The claim that Georgia "won the PR war" is just a way of saying that the western media was determined to back Georgia despite the facts.

Richard Cheeseman, Wellington, Aotearoa/NZ

Wasn't that the whole point of this war from the day one?
Winning the PR war is a side effect, the primary objective was to reawaken readiness of the US/EU to make monetary and weaponry infusions into Georgia. So, absolutely, that's "mission accomplished".

Seva, Boston, USA

This has nothing to do with the tiny and protected minorities of democratic Georgia, it is about Russia tryign to control the region .Russia obviously had this invasion planned, you dont just launch a major invasion through the mountains in 5 days. Since when does Russia care about persecuted groups

John, Vancouver, Canada

I don't agree that Russia lost media war. Western media is heavily biased towards their interests. Having lived in both systems, socialism and capitalism I learned that Western propaganda is a serious bussines and that Westerners are the ultimate propaganda champions. Nothing compares to them.

Jovan, Vancouver, Canada

Yes, the neo-conservatives are most excellent at PR/propaganda/ideology/rhetoric/sophistry, but grossly incompetent at everything else.

Alex, Toronto, Canada

Saakashvili's photo ops remind me of Bush and "Mission Accomplished". But for me the salient image of this war (thanks to the Times) is Saakashvili, with a terror-stricken look on his face, literally brought back down to earth.

Alex, Toronto, Canada