An Extraordinary NATO Meeting

Mon, Aug 18, 2008 at 5:59:03 pm PDT

The US has called a meeting of NATO’s 26 foreign ministers to discuss the Georgia crisis.

BRUSSELS (AFP) - Russian and US officials ramped up the diplomatic war of words on Monday on the eve of an extraordinary meeting of EU foreign ministers to discuss the crisis in Georgia.

The 26 NATO foreign ministers will hold their emergency meeting at the Alliance headquarters in the Belgian capital on Tuesday where they are set to offer help and support to Tbilisi while sending a strong message to Moscow over its military intervention there.

The extraordinary meeting was called by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice who is seeking a comprehensive review of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s relations with Moscow.

“Our long-term goal is not to have an adversarial relationship with Russia but it cannot be business as usual,” a senior US official in Brussels said.

Meanwhile, Russia claims they’re withdrawing from Georgia, but they’re doing the opposite.