Via Matt Zeitlin, a critical commentary by Refugees International chairman Joel Charny on US aid being airlifted into Georgia under humanitarian auspices. Charny alleges that it is a militarization of aid and something done better by the UN. He misses the point. I doubt the the real purpose of the exercise is to aid Georgian civilians (although it is a pleasant benefit). Rather, it seems that such a venture provides a signal of US support for Georgia and potentially creates a kind of military tripwire to forestall greater Russian intervention. Coming at the same time as the deployment of missile defense systems in Poland, the humanitarian aid delivery is part of a multi-pronged pushback against Russia.
That IS his point.
Posted by: Diodotus | October 04, 2008 at 10:06 PM