U.S. trainers say Georgian troops weren't ready

One Georgian officer who returned from the front said the army succumbed not to one-on-one combat but to overwhelming Russian air power. The officer, who appeared shaken by what he saw, showed photographs of Georgian military jeeps destroyed from the air, the bodies of their occupants lying bloated on the road.

He would not give his name because he was not authorized to speak to journalists.

Barta, the Army captain, said of the company he was training: "I know specifically that Bravo Company, I'm sure, and I hope from what I did for them, that they're better off than they would have been if this happened four weeks ago."

An independent Georgian military expert, Koba Liklikadze, said the U.S. training was not a deciding factor, attributing the army's loss to bad decisions by the government. Georgia declared a cease-fire too soon, he said, which demoralized the troops before most of them had a chance to fight.

"It was not an absolutely decisive factor whether Georgians were trained by Americans or not," he said. "What happened was due to the political decision of Georgian authorities, and not the performance on the ground."

The U.S. program has been interrupted, and critically damaged, by the war. The Georgian army has been dealt a harsh blow: While official statistics claim 180 fatalities, soldiers and civilians, Liklikadze estimated the number of dead or missing soldiers at 400.

Many Georgian military bases, including the main U.S. training facility at Vasiani, were damaged or destroyed.

The U.S. trainers now lounging at the Tbilisi Sheraton have been relegated to following the situation from the hotel's carpeted halls and glass elevators. They seem eager to either get back to work or leave.

With the future of their mission uncertain, the trainers have been drafted to help the U.S. aid operation that began last week. But it is hard to avoid the impression they would rather be elsewhere.

"I'm not saying that we're suffering here with the one million-thread-count sheets or checking out the local females at the pool," said Capt. Pongpat Piluek, a veteran of the Afghanistan war. "But if our job now is to sit here and put down roots in the couch, I'd rather do it at home."

More from msnbc.com Power struggle threatens Pakistan’s leader  Swine flu booster shots? Good luck with that   From Levi to Letterman: Palin's rough year U.S. widening definition for disability at work  Ice addict heads for poles, Everest | Trek posts On Twitter: Breaking news updates | Weird and wild

MORE FROM EUROPE

Europe Section Front

Trapped thief drops pants in bungled burglary Apology for kids sent from Britain to colonies British scientist says she penned call-girl blog Fabled Foreign Legion finds a new war to fight Obama, Medvedev see progress on nuke pact French lawmaker wants to outlaw spanking Italy arrests Mafia boss, on run for 15 years Investigation opened in Crawford extort probe Iran's first lady makes rare speech at Rome summit Europe Section Front   Add Europe headlines to your news reader: