U.S. diplomacy in Georgia

"The Takeaway’s" Adaora Udoji talks to Dr. Gregg Hall, chair of The Department of Political Science at Morehouse College, who says this crisis shows that there are many unresolved issues from the Cold War.

According to Dr. Hall, the Russian perception is that the West has been encroaching, or encircling Russia since the end of the Cold War — bringing new friends into the Western orbit to keep Russia in-check. The granting of independence to Kosovo and the plans for a missile shield in Poland and the Czeck Republic contributed to this perception.

Dr. Hall says the current crisis in Georgia, which many argue was precipitated by Georgian leaders, gave Russia the opportunity to remove Georgian military presence from South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The bonus for Russian leaders was that this also gave them the opportunity to make Georgia unfit for NATO membership.

The U.S. is not in a position to do much in the region, and Dr. Hall says more of our leaders have to recognize that our view of world politics and diplomacy has to adjust. The U.S. may be the first among equals, but out of necessity we are a power that has to consult and coordinate policy more with rising world players.

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