U.S. Official Responds to Sarkozy’s Bush Criticism over Georgia

White House deputy spokesman, Gordon Johndroe, said he was “not sure what President Sarkozy is talking about” when criticizing President Bush over the Georgian crisis.

“President Bush has been and is committed to resolving the issue between Russia and Georgia,” Johndroe told AFP.

The French President said on November 13 that a day before his trip to Moscow and Tbilisi on August 12, President Bush called him asking not to go. “When on August 8 someone had to leave for Moscow or Tbilisi, who defended human rights? Was it the president of the United States who said ‘This is unacceptable’? Or was it France which kept up the dialogue,” Sarkozy said.

And on November 14 the French President also said that EU’s strategy was “more effective” than the one of “Some of Georgia’s friends;” he also added that he could not understand what was achieved by sending warships in “nearby waters” – an obvious reference to the U.S. navy ships, which were sent to Georgia after the August war.

“I do not know what warships he is referring to,” the White House spokesman said, “but I think the people of Georgia greatly appreciated the US Navy ships that delivered much needed humanitarian supplies to them.”

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)