TBILISI, Georgia // The US vice president Dick Cheney has condemned Russia for what he called an "illegitimate, unilateral attempt" to redraw Georgia's borders by force.
Speaking during a closely watched trip to the strategic South Caucasus nation, Mr Cheney also said the United States was "fully committed" to Georgian efforts to join Nato.
"Georgia will be in our alliance," he told reporters while standing alongside the Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili.
A longtime critic of Russia, Mr Cheney was visiting Georgia and two other ex-Soviet republics - Azerbaijan and Ukraine - that are nervous about Moscow's intentions.
The trip signalled to Moscow that the US will continue cultivating close ties with Georgia and its neighbours even after Russia showed it was willing to use military force against countries along its border. "America will do its duty to work with the governments of Georgia and our other friends and allies to protect our common interests and to uphold our values," Mr Cheney said in the joint appearance with President Saakashvili.
"Russia's actions have cast grave doubts on Russia's intentions and on its reliability as an international partner," he added.
Since the war in Georgia last month, Russia has boldly asserted it has what the Russian president Dmitry Medvedev called "privileged interests" in its sphere of influence, which includes the former Soviet states in the South Caucasus.
The US is at Georgia's side, Mr Cheney said, "as you work to overcome an invasion of your sovereign territory and an illegitimate, unilateral attempt to change your country's borders by force, that has been universally condemned by the free world."
On the eve of his arrival, the White House announced a US$1 billion (Dh3.6bn) commitment to help the small but strategically located nation recover from its war with Russia.
Mr Cheney also thanked Georgia for sending troops to Iraq. Georgia has been the third largest contributor of troops to the US-led operation there.
"Now it is the responsibility of the free world to rally to the side of Georgia," the American vice president added.
Mr Saakashvili said Georgia was committed to a peaceful resolution of its disputes with the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Russia, which has given military, political and financial support to the two areas, has recognised both as independent nations.
Mr Saakashvili also said Georgia was grateful for the aid, which matched his government's estimate of war damages.
"Together with our other partners, in Europe, America and elsewhere, we will rebuild Georgia," Mr Saakashvili said. "We feel that we are not alone."
Mr Medvedev has called Mr Saakashvili a "political corpse" and Moscow has urged an arms ban while he is still in power. Cheney, however, signalled Washington's continuing strong support.
"You have been fearless in response to the occupation of your country and steadfast in your principles. We respect you," Mr Cheney told the Georgian president.
*AP
The%20specs
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The biog
Age: 19
Profession: medical student at UAE university
Favourite book: The Ocean at The End of The Lane by Neil Gaiman
Role model: Parents, followed by Fazza (Shiekh Hamdan bin Mohammed)
Favourite poet: Edger Allen Poe
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Bundesliga fixtures
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Recent winners
2002 Giselle Khoury (Colombia)
2004 Nathalie Nasralla (France)
2005 Catherine Abboud (Oceania)
2007 Grace Bijjani (Mexico)
2008 Carina El-Keddissi (Brazil)
2009 Sara Mansour (Brazil)
2010 Daniella Rahme (Australia)
2011 Maria Farah (Canada)
2012 Cynthia Moukarzel (Kuwait)
2013 Layla Yarak (Australia)
2014 Lia Saad (UAE)
2015 Cynthia Farah (Australia)
2016 Yosmely Massaad (Venezuela)
2017 Dima Safi (Ivory Coast)
2018 Rachel Younan (Australia)
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group B
Barcelona v Tottenham Hotspur, midnight
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Squad for first two ODIs
Kohli (c), Rohit, Dhawan, Rayudu, Pandey, Dhoni (wk), Pant, Jadeja, Chahal, Kuldeep, Khaleel, Shami, Thakur, Rahul.
