MOSCOW. July 11 (Interfax) - The decision by Georgia to recall its ambassador to Russia could mean Georgia is preparing to launch a military operation in the Caucasus, something that will inevitably suck in Russia, said Gleb Pavlovsky, a political scientist with Kremlin connections and head of the Effective Policy Foundation.

"The recall of the ambassador in this situation hints at a possible pre-war state of affairs in Russian-Georgian relations," Pavlovsky told Interfax.

"The actions of Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili have been aimed at preparing for military action in the Caucasus, with the inevitable involvement of Russia, because this region is strategically important to us," Pavlovsky said.

The fact that "the Untied States considered it necessary to give carte-blanche to Saakashvili" complicates the situation even more, he said.

"U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's arrival in Tbilisi after a series of explosions in Abkhazia, which apparently were masterminded by Tbilisi, and the explosion and provocations in South Ossetia, as well as her saying that everything is fine, are attempts to encourage the radicalism of the Georgian president to the utmost extent," Pavlovsky said.

The most dangerous thing is that "there are aspects that go beyond Russian-Georgian relations," the expert said.

"This is an attempt to test the nerves of the new Russian president; this is one of the tests Americans like so much," the expert said.

Georgia has reportedly recalled its Ambassador to Russia Erosi Kitsmarishvili for consultations following the "act of aggression by Russia" that were the earlier flights of a Russian aircraft over South Ossetia. The Russian Foreign Ministry had admitted that the aircraft flew briefly over S.Ossetia to "fend off the threat of an armed conflict in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone."