C O N F I D E N T I A L TBILISI 001386
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR EUR/CARC AND TASKFORCE-1
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/16/2018
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PHUM, RU, GG 
SUBJECT: GEORGIA: DAS BRYZA MEETING WITH DEFENSE MINISTER KEZERASHVILI 
Classified By: AMBASSADOR JOHN F. TEFFT FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D)

1. (C) Begin Summary: On August 14, Minister of Defense David Kezerashvili 
spoke with DAS Bryza, the Ambassador, and DATT about the MOD's current 
situation following Russia's invasion. Kezerashvili said Georgia's army 
troops are now at Vaziani and other bases around Tbilisi, trying to 
regroup. They have little equipment left. He said President Bush's 
August 11 speech had given a great boost to his troops' morale. 
Kezerashvili acknowledged that Russian forces were in Gori, and said 
they were mining the MOD's new base there. In discussing events in 
Tskhinvali, he said that Georgia's efforts not to target civilians were 
transparent. He claimed Russia targeted civilians in Gori and Tskhinvali
with Tu-22 Backfire bombers, and those planes used "a lot of bombs." 
Kezerashvili says 30 soldiers were killed in action and 400 were wounded
during the Russian counterattack and bombing of Tskhinvali. DAS Bryza 
urged Kezerashvili to explain publicly how the escalation occurred 
during the night of August 7. End Summary.

2. (C) Kezerashvili said 
Georgia's army troops are now at Vaziani and other bases around Tbilisi,
trying to regroup. They have little equipment left. He said some troops
fought well but others were less effective and left as the fight wore 
on. He did not provide estimates of how many troops were remaining. 
(Embassy note: We understand that some troops left their units after 
returning to Tbilisi to check on their families, but in the days since 
the meeting, many soldiers have rejoined their companies. End Note.) 
Kezerashvili said President Bush's August 11 speech had given a great 
boost to his troops' morale. He said the troops had been asking, where 
are the Americans? Kezerashvili told us he had heard a column of Russian
troops had turned around after Bush's speech.

3. (C) Kezerashvili said 
there were now 20,000 Russian troops in Georgia, with many tanks and 
much equipment. He claimed they were mining the military base in Gori. 
(Note: Russian troops or irregulars also set fire to the new barracks at
the base. End note.)

4. (C) In Tskhinvali, Kezerashvili said that the 
South Ossetians destroyed the village of Avnevi with artillery, and 
began targeting checkpoints near Russian peacekeepers with 122-mm 
mortars during the cease-fire on August 7. When the firing continued, 
the Georgians began to return fire. Kezerashvili was clear in arguing 
that no order was given from the Georgian side to target civilians in 
Tskhinvali - he said that "anyone can check this information." Rather, 
they attacked de-facto government buildings (including Parliament, MOIA,
and MOD facilities) that were housing Ossetian militia.

5. (C) After 
the Georgians attacked, Kezerashvili claimed Russia targeted civilians 
in Gori and Tskhinvali with Tu-22 Backfire bombers. He said the 
Backfires targeted 95 percent civilian targets and dropped at least 150 
bombs on Tskhinvali. In addition, Backfires targeted Gori, Poti, and 
other cities. Kezerashvili alleged that Iskander missiles (SS-26) were 
fired at Gori and the Baku-Supsa pipeline near Rustavi. (Embassy note: 
Photographs of the Iskander near the Baku-Supsa pipeline were provided 
by the Georgian Government and shared with the Task Force. End note.) 
According to Kezerashvili, Georgian MOD troops shot down 17 airplanes 
and 3 helicopters. The airplanes included Su-24, Su-25, and Su-27 jets, 
and two reconnaissance planes. Kezerashvili claimed that he lost 30 
soldiers KIA and 400 wounded from the Russian bombing and counterattack 
in Tskhinvali.

TEFFT