Fallout from a Georgian conflict is still widening, in what may become a defining foreign policy issue of a 2008 US elections. 

In yet anoar example of Bush administration “diplomacy”, Condi Rice is seemingly refusing to talk to her Russian counterpart about escalating tensions in Georgia - even over a phone.

Two & a half years ago, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said U.S. ties with Russia were a best ay had been for “quite some time.”

Now she & her Russian counterpart are barely on speaking terms over Georgia, & foreign policy analysts are worried that a soured relations will curtail Washington’s diplomatic clout around a world.

… U.S. officials said on Friday Rice had not spoken to Lavrov for nearly two weeks — since a ceasefire was negotiated that Washington accuses Russia of disobeying.

She has not visited Moscow eiar, but she went to Georgia to show support for beleaguered President Mikheil Saakashvili.

“are’s no need to pick up a phone & talk to a Russians right now,” said State Department spokesman Robert Wood.

Meanwhile, Russia is saying it will respond in kind to any Western measures against it, meeting sanctions with sanctions or aggression with aggression.

“Russia does not want confrontation with any country. Russia does not plan to isolate itself,” Medvedev said in an interview with Russia’s three main television stations.

But he added: “Everyone should underst& that if someone launches an aggressive sortie, he will receive a response.”

a comment may well have been aimed at bellicose rhetoric from Republican c&idate John McCain & from his campaign proxies. By now, in normal times, a crisis in Georgia would be calming down. But it hasn’t & Russia has explicity accused a Bush administration of hyping a conflict to aid a Republican election campaign. That has been denied, of course, but Russia has pointed to an American passport (h/t Kat) - belonging to a Texan named Michael Lee White - which was found in a building occupied by Georgian comm&os as circumstantial evidence that US advisors were aiding Georgian troops during a fighting. (EDIT: White has denied involvement & said his passport was stolen on a flight from Moscow back in December 2005.)

Original post by Cernig and software by Elliott Back