Russian actions in Syria might hit Georgia, American experts say

Washington is upset as Russia has launched airstrikes in Syria, - Georgian office of the Voice of America is reporting.

According to VOA, the Kremlin says the operation conducted in Syria is against ISIS but most of U.S. experts and politicians do not share the opinion.

The former Director of the U.S. National Security Council and Yale University, professor Thomas Gram, claims that Russia is trying to strengthen Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime and ISIS is not its main target. “I don’t think that the Islamic State is their target at the moment. Their main goal is the consolidation of the Assad regime. The Russians have bombed several Islamic forces including Al-Nusra, but it will be hard for the Russians to attack ISIS by means of the military equipment currently deployed in Syria,” Gram said.

Gram believes that Russia will become the target of radical Islamists because of its military operations in Syria. As a result, terrorist acts may frequently occur in the North Caucasus as well as in Moscow. According to him, Georgia will have to be especially careful in the near future.

“Several roads head to the Middle East from Russia and one of them passes through Georgia. The Georgian government should perceive this seriously; not only for the sake of Georgia’s security but because Russia refers to the issue directly. Tbilisi needs to do everything to fully control the situation and prevent potential fighters departing from Georgia. It should be done for Georgia’s safety and to observe Russia at the same time,” Gram said.

Georgia is proud of its geopolitical location as it can act as a link between the West and the East. Famous Silk Road was passing through Georgia.

However, on the other hand, owing to its strategic location, Georgia has always been a target of world powers.

They have tried to invade Georgia in order to control the world important route.

The current ongoing crisis in Syria, Iraq and Turkey might also damage Georgia, as both Russia and Turkey involved in the Syrian conflict are Georgia’s neighbours.

Wars and conflicts in neighbouring countries always affect the situation in the neighbourhood countries.

The current Georgian law-enforcement bodies should be extremely careful and act professionally in the situation for Georgia to manage avoiding any fatal consequences.