Post-Cold War Conflicts: Georgia, Iraq, and Nation Building

Introduction: The Post-Cold War Security Landscape

According to Smith and Kidron, the end of the Cold War ironically initiated a series of belligerent conflicts across the globe. The international news media reported shocking brutality that ravaged Bosnia-Herzegovina, Chechnya, and especially Rwanda, where nearly 800,000 people were slaughtered during a brief six-week period in 1994. Despite the sharp increase in human casualties lost to warfare, states hardly lifted a finger to stop it. Budgets for military spending were curtailed, the production of nuclear weapons slowed, and the United Nations embarked on more peace operations than ever before.

However, the events of September 11 abruptly terminated the United States' passivity. Policymakers quickly approved dramatically increased budgets for military operations, while thousands of troops boarded ships and airplanes bound for the most perilous war zones of the new millennium. Though incessant warfare may seem inevitable in many parts of the world, including Georgia and Iraq, there is evidence to suggest that prominent leaders — such as Mikheil Saakashvili, the recently appointed President of Georgia, and James Dobbins, special United States envoy for Afghanistan and author of America's Role in Nation Building: From Germany to Iraq — may be capable of reversing this trend.

The Crisis in Georgia and the Chechen Threat

The crisis in Georgia embodies the strong sense of fear that Smith and Kidron purported to arise from the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Instead of bracing itself against a potential nuclear attack from the world's other predominant state during the Cold War, the United States today bases its foreign policy on protecting itself from comparatively smaller and less well-equipped terrorist factions. The Chechen separatists have aligned themselves with sworn enemies of the United States, including Iraq, Iran, and North Korea — all members of what President George W. Bush called the "axis of evil" — in addition to China.

This proclaimed disdain of the Chechen rebels became particularly evident after October 2002, when 50 Chechen fighters seized control of a theatre in Moscow to hold 700 patrons hostage. Russian special forces killed the remaining guerrillas; however, during the attempt to save the hostages, 100 perished as a result of gases released by Russian soldiers.

Saakashvili's Democratic Revolution

Despite the perpetual chaos that has plagued Georgia since the dismantlement of the Soviet empire, this small state is showing signs that it may be willing to trade warfare for peace. Mikheil Saakashvili, a native Georgian who was educated in the United States, was invited back to his homeland to help rebuild the shattered former Soviet Republic. Though his methods appear drastic and even potentially dangerous, Saakashvili has done only what is necessary to establish order within his home state.

Determined to purge the corruption that had crippled the government, Saakashvili continually challenged the incumbents who had pleaded for him to return. Despite their eagerness to have him working within the state government, the ministers stubbornly rejected his ideas. Undeterred, Saakashvili led 500,000 protesters to the presidential residence. He delivered a non-negotiable demand and walked out a few minutes later with President Shevardnadze's resignation and his own undisputed status as the country's new political leader.

In order to maintain his coalition, Saakashvili organized a power-sharing arrangement with Nino Burdzhanadze, the parliament speaker who was then serving as interim president. According to this arrangement, Burdzhanadze would remain as head of the legislature, and Zurab Zhvania, the third opposition leader, would join the government, possibly as minister of state. On November 26, Saakashvili announced his candidacy for president and officially closed the power-sharing deal: Burdzhanadze would lead the next legislature, and Zhvania would serve as interim state minister and later prime minister — a newly created position.

Establishing Saakashvili as president would not only be beneficial to Georgia, but to the United States as well. It would make him the most Americanized national leader ever seen in the former Soviet Union outside the Baltic states. After completing his undergraduate studies, Saakashvili earned a law degree in the United States. He once said, "I was really raised on American democracy, not only my studies but much more. JFK is my idol." Due to his avid support of the United States, Saakashvili would certainly want to establish a strong relationship with his adopted country, if only to promote the vitality of his homeland. Although he employed directly confrontational tactics to establish himself within the government, advocates such as Alexander Lomaia, executive director of the Open Society Georgia Foundation, declared that he had posed a threat only to those who contributed to the dysfunctional operation of governmental affairs.

Conclusion: Toward a New World Order

The end of the Cold War undeniably caused a myriad of civil wars, particularly in former Soviet territories. The disintegration of local Soviet authority inevitably created a series of states vulnerable to anarchical organizations determined to unleash and wield their power. Though states such as Georgia and Iraq have suffered the consequences of this transition, there are signs suggesting that political leaders are finally purging themselves of the lingering ideological sentiments left over from the bipolarity of the Cold War.

The immense popularity of a pro-United States leader in one of the former Caucasus states, and the call for American policymakers to adopt a multilateral approach instead of the single-handed methods of the past, both indicate a readiness to accept the new world order and to work toward sustained peace and functionality.

Bibliography

Baker, Peter. "Called Home to Rebuild, Georgian Led Revolution." The Washington Post, 27 November 2003. Online. Accessed 26 November 2003.

Gordon, Michael. "Nation Building in Iraq: Lessons from the Past." The New York Times, 21 November 2003. Online. Accessed 26 November 2003.