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  "authors": [
    "Michael McFaul"
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    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
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Source: Getty

In The Media

Why Georgia-Russia Conflict Is Significant For U.S.

Russia’s use of force against Georgia – a close ally of the U.S. in a strategic region for oil and gas transport – is the first time since the fall of the Berlin Wall that Russian forces have violated another country’s sovereignty and international law. A resurgent Russia is testing the will of the international community to hold it responsible for its actions.

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By Michael McFaul
Published on Aug 11, 2008
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Program

Russia and Eurasia

The Russia and Eurasia Program continues Carnegie’s long tradition of independent research on major political, societal, and security trends in and U.S. policy toward a region that has been upended by Russia’s war against Ukraine.  Leaders regularly turn to our work for clear-eyed, relevant analyses on the region to inform their policy decisions.

Learn More

Source: NPR's Day to Day

The Russia-Georgia conflict is important to the U.S. beyond the strategic implications of destabilizing a region with important oil and gas pipelines. The more crucial issue for the U.S. is whether it and the international community will allow the violation of international law and the use of force by “big countries against little ones” to go unpunished.

Michael McFaul explains that the conflict between Russia and the West has been brewing for years, and is a manifestation of Prime Minister Putin’s insistence on repelling Western influence in the region; especially the expansion of NATO, which Georgia aims to join.

Click here to listen.

About the Author

Michael McFaul

Former Senior Associate

In addition to his role at Carnegie, McFaul is Peter and Helen Bing Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and associate professor of political science at Stanford University.

    Recent Work

  • Article
    Why a Democratic Russia Should Join NATO

      Леонид Гозман, Michael McFaul

  • Report
    Russia at a Crossroads: Upcoming Elections Defining Issue

      Michael McFaul, Sanja Tatic

Michael McFaul
Former Senior Associate
Michael McFaul
Foreign PolicyNorth AmericaUnited StatesCaucasusRussia

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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