Consternation in Europe

Merkel Scolds Russia for 'Violating' Cease-Fire

By recognizing the independence of Georgia's two breakaway provinces, Russia has provoked deep consternation in Europe. Germany's Chancellor Merkel was the first to contact the Kremlin to voice disapproval, and the British Foreign Secretary has said it's up to Moscow to avoid a new Cold War.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has already had words with Russia's President Medvedev.

A day after Russia's Tuesday recognition of Georgia's breakaway provinces, Western politicians are repeating their consternation at Moscow's actions and voicing concerns about what Russia intends to do next.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel was the first Western leader to contact Russian President Dmitry Medvedev after he made his bombshell announcement Tuesday recognizing Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Speaking by phone with the president on Wednesday morning, Merkel demanded an "immediate implementation" of the French-brokered cease-fire that put an end to the brief war between Russia and Georgia earlier this month.

Merkel said later that she had made clear to Medvedev "why we condemned (Russia's) recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia." The two Georgian provinces have run their own affairs since a war with Tbilisi in the early 1990s, and it was Georgia's attempt to take back control in South Ossetia by force that prompted the conflict with Moscow.

"Above all, I made it clear that I would have expected us to talk about these questions in organizations such as the OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe) and the UN Security Council before unilateral recognition took place," Merkel told reporters. Merkel added that Russia had itself worked on several UN resolutions that stressed the territorial integrity of Georgia. The chancellor is due to meet Medvedev face-to-face in St. Petersburg in October.

Also on Wednesday, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband warned Russia not to start a new Cold War. "Russia has not reconciled itself to the new map of this new region," Miliband told a group of students in Kiev, Ukraine. He said that he would be speaking to other foreign ministers from the G-7 group of industrialized nations about how to deal with Russia. "We need to examine the nature, depth and breadth of relations."

Ukraine, in particular, is looking nervously on as Moscow attempts to reassert authority in its former sphere of influence. The country, which is much larger than Georiga, has a pro-Western president, Viktor Yushchenko, but it is also home to a sizable Russian-speaking population. Kiev has already angered Moscow by saying it is not planning to renew a lease for Russia's Black Sea fleet at the Ukrainean port of Sevastopol.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner on Wednesday also warned that Russia may well have its eye on other areas with Russian minorities, such as Ukraine and Moldova. "It is very dangerous," he told Europe1 radio. "There are other objectives that one can suppose are objectives for Russia." He also condemned the Russian decision to recognize the independence of the two Georgian provinces. "We cannot accept these violations of international law, of accords for security and cooperation in Europe, of United Nations resolutions and the seizing of one territory by the army of a neighboring country."

Meanwhile, NATO has called upon Russia to reverse its recognition of the two Georgian regions. In a statement released after a meeting in Brussels, the 26-nation alliance said that "Russia's actions have called into question its commitment to peace and security in the Caucasus."

smd -- with wire reports