But it's hard to escape the notion that Georgia is keen on (i) fighting with Russia, and (ii) dragging the West in that confrontation with Russia;

We have a deal with South Ossetia on how we will deal with crisis situations.

Oh, great.  I confess my grasp of European history is not what it should be, but isn't this more or less how WWI got started?  A relatively small territorial dispute pulled in other powers through a web of "security arrangements," creating an ever-wider conflict?  I do not have a good feeling about where this is going.

We all bleed the same color.