Ceasefire

Russia and Georgia have agreed to a ceasefire, although it appears that there is still some shooting going on near Gori.

I think that Kevin Drum’s assessment of what happened here is correct; Russia humiliated Georgia and secured the two breakaway areas at very low cost. Removing Saakashvili would have been a much more difficult operation in both diplomatic and military terms, and the Russians decided against it, probably at an early point.

I’ll have a longer assessment in a couple of hours, filled with linky goodness.

…this suggests that earlier optimism may have been unfounded:

Georgian officials say the city of Gori was looted and bombed by the Russians. An AP reporter later saw dozens of tanks and military vehicles leaving the city, roaring south.

Russian troops waved at journalists and one soldier jokingly shouted to a photographer: “Come with us, beauty, we’re going to Tbilisi!”

In fairness, the tank column then turned around and went back to South Ossetia. I’m guessing that the Russians are still interested in displays of dominance, but won’t take any additional risks. I could be wrong, though.