Thursday, August 28, 2008 - 10:20
AFP News Briefs ListMedvedev hails 'united' Asian support on Georgia
President Dmitry Medvedev said Thursday that Russia had "united" support from China and Central Asian allies for its actions in Georgia and said it should send a "serious signal" to the West.
"I am sure that the united position of the SCO member states will have international resonance," Medvedev said at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Council (SCO), grouping Russia, China and four ex-Soviet Central Asian states.
"And I hope it will serve as a serious signal to those who try to turn black into white and justify this aggression," he said in the Tajik capital of Dushanbe.
Russia is facing an avalanche of condemnation from the West over its decision to recognise the independence of two Georgian secessionist regions at the heart of the conflict that erupted in Georgia this month.
Medvedev condemned Georgia's "aggression" against South Ossetia, which prompted Russia to send troops deep inside Georgian territory on August 8.
The Russian president implicitly called on the United States to halt its support for Georgia, which is seeking to join NATO and whose troops received US training.
"It's well known who helped Georgian authorities and even encouraged them in pursuit of their own aims. This is unacceptable and must end," he said.
Russia has reacted angrily to Western criticism, saying that it fails to recognise that Moscow used military force only in response to a Georgian attack against South Ossetia, where tens of thousands of Russian citizens live.
Medvedev met Chinese President Hu Jintao in Dushanbe on the eve of the summit and informed him of the situation in Georgia.
