TODAY: Hillary Clinton voices US disappointment on Russia’s ‘occupation’ of breakaway regions; reassures Saakashvili; Putin’s riposte; Kyrgyzstan president fears further unrest; Russia-Kazakhstan relations flourishing. Medvedev’s twitter imposter; foreigners’ irritation at red tape hurdles for Seliger; sports minister under pressure to resign after lavish expenses; Lake Baikal; banyas

Hillary Clinton has underlined Washington’s disapproval of Russia’s ‘invasion and occupation‘ of Georgian territory on her trip to Tbilisi and offered ample reassurances: ‘The United States is steadfast in its commitment to Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity’.  President Saakashvili is apparently now persuaded that the reset is not ‘at the expense of others’.  The Secretary of State suggested that Georgia’s deferring from provoking Russia and strengthening its own statehood would be ‘the greatest answer’ to any aggression from Russia.  Andrew Osborn in the Telegraph says it’s ‘sound advice’ but ‘it was also a tacit admission that Russia had won the geopolitical as well as the hot war, that the territory is perhaps irreparably lost’.  Despite managing to tread carefully, ‘keeping everyone happy is going to be hard’, this article on the BBC suggests.  Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has criticized Georgia for seeking out US backing in its quarrels with the two breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.  The Washington Post goes through START ratification issue with a fine tooth comb.