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Article: A shared US-Russia interest in a stable Georgia.(OPINION)
- Article from:
- The Christian Science Monitor
- Article date:
- January 16, 2004
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 The Christian Science Publishing Society. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Richard C. Hottelet
WILTON, CONN. -- A small miracle in the difficult Caucasus: In Georgia, people power threw out a corrupt regime without shedding a drop of blood and then elected its successor in a genuine landslide.
A surprise to all, including big brother Russia, which keeps a wary eye on the scene.
Until 1991, Georgia was a Soviet republic, occupying a special niche as the birthplace of Stalin and a source of citrus fruits and other produce for the Soviet Union. After independence, Georgia was geopolitically important to the new Russian Federation, adjoining Chechnya and other volatile areas of the Russian Caucasus. It was so ...