Russia, Georgia and South Ossetia

No extra analysis from me today (see yesterday's post), but some links to others' analysis and information.

Information:

• The Georgian Foreign Ministry appear to have set up a blogspot news service, which the BBC are linking to. It's got an hour by hour timeline (e.g. this morning: "02:05 Russian aviation bombarded Kaspi 30 Kms from Tbilisi out of conflict zone. 3 bombs were dropped near the Heidelberg Cement factory (one of two cement factories in the country). No damage was reported.")
• Reuters Alertnet is always one of the best sources in conflict and crisis situations, distilling information from the Reuters wire and adding depth via serious experts, and other features. Here's their Georgia, Abkhazia, S. Ossetia page. For example, you can click on basic background or a detailed background.
  

Background:

• Joshua Kacera's long despatch from Ossetia and other former Soviet colonies, from May, is excellent background (recommended by Michael Totten)
  
• Flesh is Grass has done some research, so you don't need to.
• Clearly, the oil dimension is important. Michael Klare writes here on petro-power and energo-fascism (reached via TNC)
  

Analysis:

• The New Centrist now has a very good post up: Georgia and the reemergence of the Russian bear
• Villagers with Torches has a series of articles (reached via TNC)
• Registan, and especially Joshua Froust, also has good analysis (reached via Roland), as does Froust's home Second Hand Conjecture, including this nugget of wisdom: "Putin, the master of I’m-not-you-are school of geopolitical disputation, accuses the US of a “Cold War mentality.” I would agree, of course it does tend to happen when you start acting like the Soviet Union."
• Finally, this article by Anne Applebaum is good (reached via Mr Totten)

Added: Good regular round-ups at Amused Cynicism.