Georgia is a sovereign nation, perhaps it reacted a shortsighted manner thinking that there were be no retaliation by the Russians if they tried to forcefully retake the separatist province. I am sure that the Georgian hierarchy is now sorry about the gamble it took, knowing that the Russian military far outweighs its own.
And the republic of Georgia is only the size of South Carolina compared to the much larger Russian behemoth. Too bad also that the South Ossetian are a favored lot for the Russians, since they have been supportive of Russian politics. But now Tbilisi is inches away from being bombarded and the American "staunch" ally is getting no NATO help other then the transport of Georgian troops from the Iraq frontier.
My guess is Georgia's North Atlantic Treaty friends are only going to use words to try and get a ceasefiire in the regional war but what should keep the Russians from supporting other secessionist areas so that they can dominate the Caucasian region again. I say again because after the split up of the ex-Soviet Union, it is likely the Russian Federation always wanted to get back into the country it just invaded. Georgia currently hosts a pipeline, connecting the Caspian and Mediterranean seas that was just constructed to avoid the hot spots of the Middle East. Its loss to the Russians would mean a tremendous boost in the latter's oil revenue.
