Let’s have a quick look at international reactions to the conflict in Georgia. What we are interested in is how the West responded to Russia’s aggression in Georgia. As I am writing this, the conflict is still raging, so it is hard to extract myself from the events and provide a clear analysis. What follows is a short round-up of reactions, followed by brief comments:

- Eastern Europe and the Baltic states reacted strongly, condemning Russia’s aggression and pointing the finger at Moscow. Lithuania sent their FM, to Georgia Estonia is sending cyber attack specialists to help Georgia, entering the conflict in an interesting way [see article ]. In a courageous move, Ukraine warned that it would not allow Russian warships from returning to their base in Sevastopol.

- The US has gradually stepped up its rhetoric as the conflict escalated, warning Russia that its moves were disporportionate and threatening of a serious and long lasting cooldown of relations with Moscow. President Bush has come out strong to defend Georgia, but only in rhetoric.

- France, through the voice of President Nicolas Sarkozy, has shown true leadership inside the EU. Sarkozy reportedly had a tough exchange of words with Putin in Beijing, telling the Russian PM to retreat from Georgia. Paris sent in their FM into Georgia to mediate a peace agreement, which asked for Russian troops to retreat from S. Ossetia. As expected, the proposal was rejected by Russia. [see news ]

A few remarks. First, Eastern Europeans showed true courage and stood behind Georgia. A notable exception was Romania [the second largest country in the region, NATO and EU member, with significant military capabilities], who issued a bland statement more than 48 hours after the conflict outbreak.

Second, the US rhetoric is in line with its foreign policy line, but alas it cannot be matched by action. The State Department has made clear that the US will not intervene militarily in Georgia. This is due to its strong interests in Iran - the US has to make sure that Russia does not deliver S 300 missiles to Tehran, and cannot afford to make Moscow too upset. American interests in Iran supersede those in Georgia, and are compounded by worries of Russia’s ability to thwart US policies in other hot areas, most notably Afghanistan and Syria.

Third, and most importantly, France acted as a true European leader, taking a strong stance toward Russia. Witness to this is the recent announcement that President Sarkozy will visit Tbilisi tomorrow. From the point of view of EU diplomacy, it was lucky that the conflict erupted during the presidency of a large country like France.

More analysis will follow as the conflict unfolds.