By H.E. George Sharvashidze, Ambassador of Georgia to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
11 years have passed since Russia’s aggression against Georgia in 2008. After the invasion, Russian Federation illegally occupied Georgia’s historical regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia.
As a result of the occupation, security and stability on the ground is constantly being threatened. Local population faces severe socio-economic ruin and humanitarian hurdles, gross violations of human rights and ethnic discrimination is being promoted, people are deprived of their lives. Moreover, Russia has intensified the steps towards factual annexation of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia, seeking full incorporation of Georgia’s indivisible regions into its military, political, economic systems and legal framework in full disregard of international law.
Russian military invasion into Georgia was premeditated and thoroughly calculated long before the actual war. Russian President himself confirmed to the state media that the general staff drew up this plan somewhere in late 2006 or early 2007.
The provocations started in first days of August 2008 with massive attacks on Georgian controlled villages by Russian-backed Ossetian volunteers, which preceded by the units of Russia’s 58thArmy crossing the state border of Georgia through the Roki Tunnel on 7 August 2008. With an artificial pretext of protecting the Russian “citizens” on Georgian soil, Moscow started a large-scale attack against the sovereign country on land, at sea, by air, and via cyberspace. Russian aviation bombed more than 20 cities and villages throughout the whole territory of Georgia, including Tbilisi and Kutaisi. 165 bombs and missiles were dropped using military aircrafts and strategic bombers.
Cluster bombs and other types of weapons banned by the international agreements were also used by Russian forces. As a consequence of Russia’s open aggression, hundreds of people, including civilians, were killed and wounded, 53 Georgian villages were cleansed, houses of 35 000 people were burnt and destroyed. The war was accompanied by yet another ethnic cleansing of Georgians, creating a wave of 130 thousand IDPs fleeing the villages under shelling and aviation fire. It is obvious that Russia’s unrestrained forces would have gone further if the international society did not take a firm stance.
Throughout these years, the security and human rights situation in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia as well as in adjacent territories to the occupation line has further aggravated. The Russian Federation has been strengthening its illegal military presence on Georgian soil. Additionally, the airspace of Georgia is constantly being violated by the Russian aircrafts.
Ethnic Georgians who remained in the occupied territories are now the subject of intensified discrimination. There are no international mechanisms operating on the ground to effectively address these challenges. One of the sensitive issues that Russia and the occupation regimes in Sokhumi and Tskhinvali reject to address concerns the grave violations of right to education in native language. They have been gradually closing all Georgian schools or changing the language of instruction into Russian.
The most tragic incidents however were connected to the deprivation of the right to life, more specifically, to the murder of Georgian IDPs Archil Tatunashvili, Giga Otkhozoria, and Davit Basharuli. In all three cases, the murder was committed by representatives of the occupation regimes in Sokhumi and Tskhinvali. These are the cases of brutal torture on the grounds of ethnicity.
This serves as yet another demonstration of how far the sense of impunity has progressed in the occupied territories. This tendency is adding further stimulus to the ethnically driven violence in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia. For this very reason the Government of Georgia introduced the “Otkhzoria-Tatunashvili List” as a preventive step to avoid further aggravation of situation through imposing the restrictive measures on the individuals responsible for human rights abuses in the occupied regions.
Despite the challenging aftermath of August 2008 war and occupation of 20% of the territory, Georgia has managed to succeed in its democratic transition and economic development, and further advanced on its irreversible path towards European and Euro-Atlantic integration. Against all odds, Georgia has successfully implemented the comprehensive reforms, and achieved significant progress in good governance, rule of law, human rights and free business environment, taking one of the leading positions in Eastern European region.
At the same time, Georgia has continued its unwavering stance to peace and security, and this commitment has been vividly demonstrated by specific steps in the process of peaceful resolution of the Russia-Georgia conflict. Remaining in full compliance with the 12 August 2008 Ceasefire Agreement, Georgia has many times reaffirmed the non-use of force pledge and has seen firmly observing this international principle vis-à-vis Russia, still awaiting the reciprocity.
Georgia spares no effort to reach tangible results in the Geneva International Discussions, and continues constructive participation in the negotiations to address security and humanitarian challenges stemming from the unresolved conflict between Russia and Georgia. Unfortunately, the format is largely handicapped as a result of Moscow’s deliberate attempts to politicize humanitarian issues and undermine peace negotiations. In addition to result-oriented and constructive participation in the negotiation formats, Georgia has been active in its policy ofreconciliationandconfidencebuildingbetweenthecommunitiesdividedbyoccupation line.
The recent peace initiative “A Step to a Better Future” aims to further enhance engagement between the divided societies and improve the humanitarian, social, and economic conditions of conflict-affected people in Georgia’s regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia.
The peace initiative facilitates people-to-people interaction and gives the opportunity to the conflict-affected people to have access to all the benefits that the rest of the population of Georgia enjoys as a result of Georgia’s democratic and economic development and its path towards European integration.
The progress that Georgia has achieved this far would have been impossible without the enormous support of the international community. These efforts have been essential for Georgia to deal with implications of the August 2008 war and succeed on the path of its democratic choice to join European and Euro-Atlantic family of nations.
It is crucial not to lose the impetus and remain vigilant against the challenges resulting from the destructive behavior of Russia who is not willing to comply with the fundamental norms of international law. Needless to underline that through destabilization of security environment in Georgia, Ukraine and elsewhere, Russia is testing the resolve of the international society as to how far it is willing to go to defend its core principles and values. And this is the kind of challenge that no country can address on its own unless the whole international community stays united and robust.
Everyone should understand that this is not the struggle that is going to determine the fate of Georgia only. Georgia cannot and should not fight alone as the threat concerns not just a single country but the European continent as a whole. Unless Russia is contained, the similar scenario is bound to be repeated elsewhere with more determination and even more aggressively, as the example of Ukraine proved.
