This dyad belongs to the conflict Georgia: South Ossetia
Summary of conflict Georgia: South Ossetia
The dissolution of the Soviet Union gave rise to an armed conflict over the region of South Ossetia, which strived for independence from newly independent Georgia. After 1992, the conflict remained “frozen” for a long time, seeing sporadic violence and no political solution within reach. Under the Georgian President Saakashvili elected in 2004, tension heightened. It culminated in August 2008, when Russian troops repelled a Georgian attack on South Ossetia, and over 600 people died in five days of fighting.
Background
South Ossetia is located in the north of Georgia. The region has a history of being autonomous both within the Soviet Union and within Georgia. During Georgia's last years as a republic part of the Soviet Union, nationalist movements grew stronger. As nationalist passions intensified, politicians like Zviad Gamsakhurdia gained popularity through their anti-communist rhetoric and nationalist slogans. In 1990, Gamsakhurdia's pro-independence Round Table/Free Georgia coalition won the elections in Georgia's first multi-party elections. Gamsakhurdia got support from ethnic Georgians, but his nationalism alienated him from the ethnic minorities in the country. On 9 April 1991, Georgia voted for independence from the Soviet Union, and one month later, Gamsakhurdia was elected president with 87% of the votes. Criticism towards Gamsakhurdia increased, and tensions grew to armed conflict over government power in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi. Simultaneously, a non-state conflict between Georgian and South Ossetian militias broke out. When the Soviet Union dissolved in December 1991 and Georgia formally gained its independence, the conflict over South Ossetia got the dimension of an intrastate conflict within Georgia.
Conflict following the dissolution of the Soviet Union (1991-1992)
South Ossetia voted for independence from Georgia on 21 December 1991 and held a referendum on 19 January 1992. On both occasions, an overwhelming majority voted in favor of the region's independence and integration into the Russian Federation, the largest successor state to the Soviet Union. The heightened political tensions were reflected in developments on the ground. In response to the massing of Georgian government troops, South Ossetia declared a state of emergency and called for general mobilization on 23 December 1991. Nevertheless, hostilities between South Ossetian and Georgian forces decreased due to the recalling of Georgian troops from the region to defend the embattled Gamsakhurdia in Tbilisi. After Gamsakhurdia's flight to Armenia in early January 1992, fighting continued between the Republic of South Ossetia and the new government, which came to be led by Eduard Shevardnadze. The new government condemned the declaration of independence as an attempt to violate the territorial integrity of a sovereign state but expressed that it was ready to search for a negotiated solution to the problems in the region. The two fighting parties made some efforts to reconcile and negotiate an end to the problem, most of the time without progress. A somewhat more permanent solution came in June of the same year. A ceasefire and the withdrawal of all armed forces from South Ossetia were agreed on and a peacekeeping force made up of Russian, Georgian, and Ossetian troops was established. A political solution to the incompatibility was, however, not reached. Thus, the relationship between South Ossetia and the Georgian government continued to be tense.
New clashes after the Rose Revolution (2004)
In 2004, the conflict turned violent for the first time since 1992. In a peaceful transition, the “Rose Revolution” in 2003, a new president – Mikheil Saakashvili – came to power. The newly elected president stated that one of his primary goals was to restore the country's territorial integrity.
A two-pronged strategy was launched, based on the assumption that the de facto South Ossetian President Eduard Kokoity had very little democratic legitimacy and popular support and - subsequently - that shifting the population's loyalties ought to be possible. Thus, the Saakashvili government launched a large anti-smuggling campaign, aiming to deny the South Ossetian regime its incomes from the lucrative black market, leaving the local authorities unable to deliver basic services to the population. Simultaneously, the Georgian regime launched a humanitarian offensive to win the hearts and minds of the citizens. However, the dual strategy backfired, as the South Ossetian population turned even more anti-Georgian, re-grouping around Kokoity. The situation in the so-called zone of conflict - a circle of 15 km radius from the center of the de facto South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali - grew increasingly tense, with the number of Georgian troops and roadblocks swelled in connection to the anti-smuggling campaign. The South Ossetians perceived this military build-up as a preparation for military action. By July, the security situation had deteriorated significantly, with sporadic gunfire exchange between ethnic Georgian and ethnic South Ossetian villagers. In August, tensions exploded and took the region to the brink of war. For a week, there were intense shelling and gun battles between the two sides. There were both civilian and military casualties, and the Joint Peace Keeping Force ceased to function, with "peacekeepers" from Georgia and South Ossetia fighting each other. However, a ceasefire was signed on 18 August took hold on 19 August, and through the rest of the year, a precarious peace remained in place. The negotiations between the conflicting parties became deadlocked after the 2004 escalation. The relation between the two sides continued to be tense in the following three years, but only sporadic clashes occurred.
Russia intervenes, and the conflict escalates (2008)
During the first half of 2008, the security situation again deteriorated gradually. The number and intensity of gunfire exchanges increased, and both Georgia and Russia held military exercises in the border region. The latter had officially been a third party to the conflict but supported South Ossetia’s strive for self-determination.
After a few clashes between South Ossetian and Georgian troops in the first days of August, tensions culminated on 7 August 2008. Only hours after having declared a unilateral ceasefire, the Georgian president Saakashvili launched a large-scale military offensive on Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia. Immediately, Russia sent troops, tanks, and bomber planes to repel the Georgian army. Five days of heavy shelling and ground fighting followed. Eventually, Georgian troops withdrew from the South Ossetian territory, and Russian forces took control of areas far beyond the administrative border of South Ossetia. In the areas occupied by the Russian army, looting of villages took place, perpetrated mainly by South Ossetian militias. The conflict received much international attention, and mediation by the French president on behalf of the European Union resulted in a six-point peace plan signed by Russia, Georgia, South Ossetia, and Abkhazia. The agreement established a ceasefire and called for the withdrawal of all parties to the positions held before August. It did, however, not address the political status of South Ossetia.
A few days after the end of the fighting, Russia recognized the independence of South Ossetia. Only very few states followed Russia, but the open support by the powerful neighboring state nevertheless strengthened the position of South Ossetia. Claiming that South Ossetia was independent, Russia signed bilateral agreements on military support with the region that allowed Russian troops to control South Ossetia's borders. Russia also supported South Ossetia in denying EU ceasefire monitors access to the region, underlining the "new realities," i.e., the alleged independence of the region. The deployment of more than 3000 Russian troops inside South Ossetia clearly violated the ceasefire provisions calling for a withdrawal of the troops to pre-war locations and strengths. Russia only withdrew from undisputed Georgian territory in the buffer zone adjacent to South Ossetia.
Return to " frozen" a conflict (2009-2014)
In the years following the August 2008 crisis, the ties between Russia and South Ossetia grew even stronger, with South Ossetia having many Russian nationals in its administration. Russia continued to keep several thousand troops in South Ossetia and installed permanent military bases there, violating the ceasefire brokered by the EU presidency in 2008. South Ossetia also agreed on visa-free travel with Russia in 2010, while at the same time making it more difficult for Georgians in the region to cross the border. In February 2015, Russia and South Ossetia signed a border agreement, further strengthening the relationship between the two.
Thus, the relations between the Georgia on the one side and Russia and the two breakaway regions on the other side continued to be tense. However, nevertheless only a few shootings at the border took place in 2009. The number of incidents at the administrative borderline further decreased during 2010 and 2011, making the conflict return to a state of more or less a "frozen" conflict, at least in military terms, that was monitored by a European Monitoring Mission (EUMM) stationed in Georgia.
As stipulated by the ceasefire agreement concluding the August 2008 crisis, regular rounds of negotiations were held in Geneva under the joint auspices of the EU, OSCE, and UN. However, the political status of Abkhazia and South Ossetia was not on the agenda. Instead, the talks dealt with security and humanitarian issues. Few tangible results were achieved, and the negotiations, going into their 31st round in March 2015, several times became deadlocked.
