After promising to leave, Russian troops haven’t budged from Georgia in the wake of a surprising flare-up of violence in the Caucasus. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev also wouldn’t budge in his posture toward Angela Merkel during a mini-summit on Friday. German commentators wonder if Russia cares about Europe at all.
Of course Russia cares about Europe. It is a tasty morsel. If Russia controls Georgia and the pipeline that goes through it, they will have greater power over Europe. But does Europe really care who its overlords are?