Abkhazia wants to have its independence recognized, while South Ossetia seeks reunification with North Ossetia, which belongs to the Russian Federation
The war in Ukraine, which turns four years old this Tuesday (24), has once again put the spotlight on separatist movements in regions belonging to the former Soviet Union. In Georgia, there are two self-proclaimed territories with demands for separation and which receive protection from Moscow: Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
Internationally, the regions are recognized as part of Georgian territoryexcept for Russia, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Syria, Nauru and Vanuatu. In turn, the Georgia rejects the terms Abkhazia and Ossetia and identifies regions by the names of the region’s capitals: Sukhumi and Tskhinvali, respectively.
Regions have different separation demands. South Ossetia wants to unify with North Ossetia, a territory belonging to the Russian Federation. Abkhazia seeks recognition of its independence.
Relationship with Russia
Russia annexed the territory of South Ossetia in 1801 together with Georgia. Both were incorporated into the then Russian Empire. Abkhazia became a Russian protectorate in 1810 and was captured by Saint Petersburg, headquarters of the Russian Crown, in 1867, after a period of wars in the Caucasus region.
With the Russian Revolution in 1917, Abkhazia briefly possessed a republican status. In 1931, the region was incorporated into the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, belonging to the former Soviet Union.
The dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991 led separatist forces in both regions to wage civil conflict against Georgia. In the same year, the South Ossetia declared itself independent, while Abkhazia broke away in 1992.
With the outbreak of war in Georgia in 2008, Moscow supported South Ossetia and Abkhazia by sending troops to the regions. After the end of the conflict, the Russia recognized the independence of the regions and maintained troops in the territories.
‘Irredentism’
According to Fabrício Vitorino, journalist and researcher at the Center for Research in International Politics, Security and Defense at the Federal University of Santa Catarina (NPSeD/UFSC) and the Center for Ukrainian Studies at the University of São Paulo (NEU/USP), the South Ossetia maintains an “almost structural” integration relationship with Russia. “Moscow guarantees security, finances a significant part of the local budget and coordinates defense and foreign policy,” he explained.
The researcher said that this relationship is “a case with a strong irredentist component”. THE Young PanVitorino clarified that the concept of “irredentism” does not only refer to separatism, but to the reunification of “a people divided by borders”.
“The South Ossetians see themselves as part of the same nation as the North Ossetians, Alania. (…) North and South share the same language of Iranian origin and a common historical identity. Therefore, the theoretical aspiration is not to ‘become Russia’, but to reunite the two Ossetians,” he declared.
Influence of the war in Ukraine
International relations professor Kai Kenkel, from PUC-Rio, assessed that, with the war in Ukraine, the South Ossetia and Abkhazia felt “displacement” and the “concentration of Russian effort” in the country. Thus, according to the teacher, there is a certain concern among separatist movements in the region that Moscow’s support has weakened.
Added to this, Kenkel stated that, even with an eventual end of the war in Ukraine, the Russian attention should not be focused on Georgia. The professor explained that this is due to the fact that the country is no longer seeking to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union. THE Young Panthe professor clarified that Russia’s current imperialist agenda seeks to contain the expansion of the military alliance and the bloc in surrounding areas that still have a concentration of Russian populations.
Fabrício Vitorino explained that the conflicts in Georgia “do not derive from the war in Ukraine”. However, the Russian offensive on Ukrainian territory “reinforces the Russian logic of maintaining zones of influence”, such as those maintained in Georgian territories.
Furthermore, the South Ossetia and Abkhazia could enter the center of peace agreement negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. In a statement to journalists on Monday (23), the vice-president of the European Commission, Kaja Kallas, confirmed that the European Union is formulating a proposal in which it determines that the Kremlin decides to vacate territories in Georgia, Armenia or Moldova. The information is from the Portuguese newspaper News by the Minute.
Kallas stated that the initiative would be a way to “balance the negotiations a little” between Kiev and Moscow. For her, the main objective is to shed light on the real problem in Eastern Europe: “Russia continues to attack its neighbors”.
