C O N F I D E N T I A L RIGA 000492 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/14/2018
TAGS: PREL, MARR, MOPS, RS, GG, UP, LG SUBJECT: TFGG01: PM GODMANIS ON 
VISIT TO GEORGIA Classified By: Ambassador Charles W. Larson, Jr. 
Reason: 1.4 (d) 

1. (C) On the margins of an August 14 special session of
Parliament to express Latvian support for Georgia, Ambassador Larson 
had an opportunity to discuss briefly with PM Godmanis his visit to 
Georgia with the Presidents of Lithuania, Estonia, Poland, and Ukraine. 
The Ambassador commended the PM on his leadership in making the trip. 
Godmanis said that it was very important to make the trip and show 
solidarity for Georgia. He added that including Yushenko was 
particularly important as a way to show support for Ukraine. "The rest 
of us have the protection of being in NATO and the EU. Yushenko is 
really out there alone and needs our support," Godmanis said. 

2. (C) 
Godmanis said that the most important thing for Georgia is 
"verification." Noting Russian claims of 2,000 dead in South Ossetia he 
asked "Where are the bodies?" He also said that the Georgians had 
claimed that artillery coming out of South Ossetia into Georgia prior to
August 6 came from Russian weapons larger than allowed under the terms 
of the peacekeeping mission there. "That should be easy to check," he 
said. Only with verification, Godmanis added, could we show that the 
Russians were exaggerating or fabricating their reports. 

3. (C) Just 
prior to leaving, the PM said, that "we need to look at ways to 
strengthen our defenses. It may not be cheap and it may not be popular, 
but it is needed." LARSON