Russia Mends Georgian Ties as Sochi Heals Beijing Wounds
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On the first day of the Beijing Olympics six years ago, war broke out between Georgia and Russia. The Sochi Winter games finds the neighbors on much friendlier terms.
Georgia’s government is seeking to use the $45 billion Winter Olympics to revive ties, with Premier Irakli Garibashvili saying four days after the Feb. 7 opening ceremony that he’s ready for a “direct dialogue” with his country’s northern neighbor. Sochi is just across the border from the breakaway regions that ignited the two countries’ five-day war in 2008.