Even following the near-evisceration of the Republic of Georgia by Russia’s military forces, the U.S. has Georgia on its mind — and in its wallet — to the tune of one billion big ones.
Administration officials recently announced a plan to send $1 billion in aid to the reeling U.S. ally and former Soviet socialite, uh, that’s satellite. But how much of that aid is military moola? It seems no one’s talking, though one official said “ ‘now is not the time’ to discuss military assistance.” Well, maybe he meant publicly, because it is always time to talk gun runnin’ and foreign military sales in the name of U.S. national defense. (Reports have confirmed that a Pentagon team is on the ground assessing military needs.)
Who cares about second-world socialites? Well, we do and have assisted these propped-up painted ladies militarily since the “fall” of the Soviet Union. In fact, through our foreign military sales and training programs, we did much to build and train the force that Bad Vlad (Putin) and the Ruskies crushed in a matter of days. This could be a new business model: Build ‘em, Beat ‘em, Bilk ‘em all over again. Why not? If we don’t, someone else will.
Strategically located for Russia as well as the West, Georgia was paralyzed when the Russian military nearly cut the country in two occupying the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia giving new meaning to “back in the USSR.” No one wants to make Bad Vlad mad, (most notably our staunch allies in Western Europe), but rebuilding Georgia’s military is necessary … ? Well, it might prove lucrative if nothing else.
The funds will be transferred in at least two installments, the first totaling $570 million. That’s more than $100 per man, woman and Georgian child, compared to a reported $1.76 per capita that goes to Ukraine. Cha-ching.
Sure. We’ll continue our foreign military training programs that take place both in the U.S. and on foreign soil, but the true financial windfall comes through foreign military sales and other contracts. Georgia needs hardware and is going to purchase it from …? The Pentagon of course. Hey, Lockheed, looking for another market for your littoral combat ship? Look no further. Have a nation in shambles? Contract with U.S. firms for anything from food services to public relations. Do your neighbors see you as a “political corpse?”Contract with one of many U.S. security firms. Millions will be lining the pockets of defense contractors before Christmas. Not that we’d compare this to the funding of the rebuilding and rearming of Iraq.
Who’s next?