Russo-Georgian War

2008 South Ossetia war
Part of Georgian-Ossetian conflict and Georgian-Abkhazian conflict
File:2008 South Ossetia war.svg Location of Georgia (including Abkhazia and South Ossetia) and the Russian part of North Caucasus
Date 7 August 2008 – 12 August or 16 August (Preliminary ceasefire) Location Georgia Result Russian / South Ossetian / Abkhazian victory Russian recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent republics. Ethnic cleansing of Georgian civilians in South Ossetia. Territorial changes Georgia loses control over parts of Abkhazia and S. Ossetia it previously held. Establishment of Russian buffer zones in Georgia.
Belligerents
Russian Federation South Ossetia Abkhazia	Georgia
Commanders and leaders
Eduard Kokoity Anatoly Khrulyov Vladimir Shamanov Marat Kulakhmetov Vyacheslav Borisov Sulim Yamadayev Sergei Bagapsh	Davit Kezerashvili Zaza Gogava Mamuka Kurashvili
Strength
18,000 including reservists; unknown number of volunteers Est. at least 15,000 regulars in Georgia (as of 13/07/08), not including support and rear troops (in Russia and on the sea); unknown number of irregulars 5,000 not including reservists; unknown number of volunteers At least 38,000 total	17,500 regulars, including 2,000 initially in Iraq; 70,000 conscripted reservists and volunteers; unknown number of Georgian Police deployed in the conflict zone At least 37,000 total
Casualties and losses
Confirmed by Russia: 311 civilians 71 soldiers killed, 340 wounded, 5 captured Unknown number of losses among the volunteers Confirmed by Abkhazia: 1 soldier killed, 2 wounded	Confirmed by Georgia: 238 killed (including 69 civilians), 14 missing, 37 captured Independent Georgian estimate: 400 military casualties
South Ossetia's latest estimate of 1,492 civilians killed
Refugees: At least 158,000 civilians displaced (including 56,000 from Gori, Georgia and 15,000 South Ossetian Georgians per UNHCR). Estimate by Georgian Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs: at least 230,000. Displaced from South Ossetia to Russia: Russian estimate, 30,000; HRW estimate, 24,000.

The 2008 South Ossetia War was a land, air and sea war fought between Georgia, on one side, and the separatist regions, South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and the Russian Federation, on the other. Ongoing occasional skirmishes escalated to a war early in the morning of 8 August, 2008, when Georgia launched a large-scale attack against the break-away region of South Ossetia. This was followed by a large-scale Russian counter-attack into Georgian territory. In five days of fighting, Georgian forces were ousted from both South Ossetia and Abkhazia. A preliminary ceasefire was signed on 14 August - 16 August, 2008.

Background

Main article: Background of the 2008 South Ossetia war

See also: Georgian-Ossetian conflict; South Ossetian independence referendum, 2006; and 2008 Georgia-Russia crisis

Ethnic map of the Caucasus from 1995: Ossetians live in North and South Ossetia, as well as in central Georgia.

The Ossetians are an Iranian ethnic group whose origin lies along the Don River. They came to the Caucasus after being driven out of their homeland in the Mongol invasions of the 13th century. Some clans settled in the territory now known as North Ossetia-Alania (currently part of Russia), and South Ossetia (currently part of Georgia). South Ossetia, which has a Georgian ethnic minority of around one fifth (14,000) of the total population (70,000), broke away from Georgia in the 1991–1992 war (in which more than 2,000 people are believed to have died). Russian as well as Georgian and South Ossetian peacekeepers were then stationed in South Ossetia under JCC mandate and monitoring. The 1992 ceasefire also defined both a zone of conflict around the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali and a security corridor along the border of South Ossetian territories. In a 2006 South Ossetian independence referendum, held by the secessionist government, full independence was supported by 99% of the voters. Georgia accused Russia of the annexation of its internationally recognised territory and installing a puppet government led by Eduard Kokoity and several officials who previously served in the Russian FSB and Army. Restoring South Ossetia and Abkhazia (a region with a similar separatist movement) to Georgian control has been a goal of Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili since the Rose Revolution.

According to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, 90% of South Ossetians possess Russian passports and thereby qualify for protection under article 80 of the Russian constitution. BBC and other sources say that Russia has issued most South Ossetians with Russian passports, thus potentially justifying future intervention on the grounds of protecting its own citizens. Reuters describes the South Ossetian separatist government as "dependent on Russia," which "supplies two thirds of their annual budget," and reports that "Russia's state-controlled gas giant Gazprom is building new gas pipelines and infrastructure" worth hundreds of millions of dollars there. On August 8, Yulia Latynina described the separatist government of South Ossetia as essentially a criminal offshore company run by former high-ranking Russia bureaucrats and officers.

A Jamestown Foundation affiliated Russian military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer speculated that "Russia's invasion of Georgia had been planned in advance, with the final political decision to complete the preparations and start war in August apparently having been made back in April." The Financial Times further speculated: "So swift was the Russian reaction that some analysts believe that, while it did not appear to precede the Georgian assault on Tskhinvali, as Mr Saakashvili claims, it may have been planned in advance, with Mr Saakashvili simply falling into a well prepared Russian trap." However these speculations contradict an unnamed US Defense official who said that there was no obvious buildup of Russian forces along the border that signaled an intention to invade. "Once it did happen they were able to get the forces quickly and it was just a matter of taking the roads in. So it's not as though they were building up forces on the border, waiting," the official said.

According to Peter Lavelle, a widely published journalist and expert on Eastern Europe, "America’s neocon project – now deeply embedded in its foreign policy genetic code – has no interest in democracy and it is quite willing to export security threats on to others (like its anti-missile system in Eastern Europe directed against Russia). Washington is only interested in securing the US against any real or perceived security threats to protect its interests – and its security interests are truly global. Because Russia refuses to accept this and the likes of Saakashvili, it is called a global threat. The fact is Russia is most interested in its regional security."

Timeline of events

Main article: Timeline of the 2008 South Ossetia war

Damaged buildings in Tskinvali

• August 1 - At 8:05 am on a detour road connecting Georgian-populated villages near Tskhinvali, a Georgian police car was bombed, with 6 policemen wounded (according to official report, 5 wounded) Late in the evening, intense fighting began between Georgian troops and the forces of South Ossetia. Georgia claimed that South Ossetian separatists had shelled Georgian villages in violation of a ceasefire. South Ossetia denied provoking the conflict. A South Ossetia leader and Russian command reported that a South Ossetia militiaman was killed by sniper fire from Georgia at 6:17pm and the at least 3 other people were killed by sniper fire around 9pm.
• August 2 - The Russian military exercise Caucasus Frontier 2008 ends.
• August 5 - Russian ambassador-at-large Yuri Popov warned that Russia would intervene if conflict erupted. Dmitry Medoyev, a South Ossetian presidential envoy, declared in Moscow: "Volunteers are arriving already, primarily from North Ossetia" in South Ossetia.
• August 7 - President Mikheil Saakashvili ordered Georgian troops to cease fire.
  According to Georgian military, despite the declared ceasefire, fighting intensified. Hours after the declaration of the ceasefire, in a televised address, Mikheil Saakashvili vowed to restore Tbilisi's control by force over what he called the "criminal regime" in South Ossetia and Abkhazia and reinforce order.
• August 8 - During the night and early morning, Georgia launched a military offensive to surround and capture the capital of separatist Republic of South Ossetia, Tskhinvali thus breaking the terms of the 1992 ceasefire and crossing into the security zone established therein. According to a Russian military official, over ten Russian peacekeepers were killed during the attack. The heavy shelling, which included Georgian rockets being fired into South Ossetia left parts of the capital city in ruins, which Russian government sources claimed amounted to genocide. The news of the shelling was extensively covered by Russian media prior to the military reaction that followed, as Russia claimed to have responded in defense of South Ossetians against what they called "a genocide by Georgian forces." Russia claimed up to 2,000 dead in Tskhinvali following the shelling. The extent of civilian casualties was later disputed in a number of sources. President Saakashvili later claimed that the Russian side has deployed tanks into the disputed region before he gave the order for Georgian forces to attack. At Russia’s request, the United Nations Security Council held consultations on 7 August at 11pm (US EST time), followed by an open meeting at 1.15am (US EST time) on 8 August, with Georgia attending. During consultations, Council members discussed a press statement that called for an end to hostilities. They were unable, however, to come to a consensus. In the morning, Georgia announced that it had surrounded the city and captured eight South Ossetian villages. An independent Georgian TV station announced that Georgian military took control of the city.
  Russia sent troops across the Georgian border, into South Ossetia.

Burned Georgian tank in Tskhinvali

• August 9 - An action in the Black Sea off Abkhazia resulted in one Georgian missile boat being sunk by the Russian Navy. The Russians claimed that the Georgian ships entered the security zone of the Russian war ships, and the action of the Russian Navy was in accordance with international law. After the skirmish, the remaining Georgian ships withdrew.
  A second front was opened by the military of the Georgia's separatist Republic of Abkhazia in the Kodori Valley, the only region of Abkhazia that was, before the war began, still in effective control of Georgian loyalists.
  Most international observers began calling for a peaceful solution to the conflict. The European Union and the United States expressed a willingness to send a joint delegation to try and negotiate a cease-fire.
• August 11 - Russia ruled out peace talks with Georgia until the latter withdrew from South Ossetia and signed a legally binding pact renouncing the use of force against South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
  On that night, Russian paratroopers deployed in Abkhazia carried out raids deep inside Georgian territory to destroy military bases from where Georgia could send reinforcements to its troops sealed off in South Ossetia. Russian forces reached the military base near the town of Senaki outside Abkhazia on the 11th, leaving the base there destroyed. Gori was shelled and bombed by the Russians as the Georgian military and most of residents of the Gori District fled. Since Gori is along Georgia's main highway, its occupation by Russian forces, combined with destruction of a railway bridge, cut Georgia's lines of communication and logistics in two.
  
• August 12 - Russian President Medvedev said that he had ordered an end to military operations in Georgia. Later on the same day, Russian president Medvedev approved a six-point peace plan brokered by President-in-Office of the European Union, Nicolas Sarkozy, in Moscow; both sides were to sign it by the 17th.
  Russian troops drove through the port of Poti, and took up positions around it.
• August 13 - All of the remaining Georgian forces, including at least 1,500 civilians in the Kodori Valley, had retreated to Georgia proper.
  Russian tanks were seen at Gori. Russian troops were seen on the road from Gori to Tbilisi, but turned off to the north, about an hour from Tbilisi, and encamped. Georgian troops occupied the road six miles (about 10 km) closer to Tbilisi.
• August 14 - Efforts to institute joint patrols of Georgian and Russian police in Gori broke down due to apparent discord among personnel.
• August 15 - Reuters stated that Russian forces had pushed to 34 miles (55 km) from Tbilisi, the closest during the war; they stopped in Igoeti 41°59′22″N 44°25′04″E, an important crossroads. According to the report, 17 APCs and 200 soldiers, including snipers, participated in the advance; the convoy included a military ambulance, and initially, three helicopters. That day, United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also traveled to Tbilisi, where Saakashvili signed the 6-point peace plan in her presence.
• August 16 - The Russians had occupied Poti, as well as military bases in Gori and Senaki.
• August 17 - the BBC's Richard Galpin, who has spent the past two days travelling from the Black Sea port of Poti to Tbilisi, says Georgian forces seem to be surrendering control of the highway to the Russians. According to BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse, there is a "much-reduced" Russian military presence in Gori and lorries can be seen delivering humanitarian aid. But he says Russian soldiers still control the town's key entry and exit points.
  Referring to a major ground exercise Russia held in July, just north of Georgia’s border, Dale Herspring (an expert on Russian military affairs at Kansas State University) described Russia's intervention as being "exactly what they executed in Georgia just a few weeks later... a complete dress rehearsal".
• August 19 - The Russian forces in Poti took prisoner 21 Georgian troops who had approached the city. They were taken to a Russian base at Senaki; there is dispute whether they were later released.
  On the same day, Russian and Georgian forces exchanged prisoners of war. Georgia said it handed over 5 Russian servicemen, in exchange for 15 Georgians, including two civilians.

• August 22 - At least 40 Russian armoured personnel carriers left Gori; other Russian troops remained in Georgia proper and dug in the outskirts of Poti with a checkpoint manned by 20 men on the main road, while a Reuters reporter apparently saw a checkpoint in Karaleti 6 km north of Gori. At a news conference Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn insisted "These patrols were envisaged in the international agreement, Poti is outside of the security zone, but that does not mean we will sit behind a fence watching them riding around in Hummers." President Sarkozy thanked President Medvedev for fulfilling commitments concerning the withdrawal of Russian troops. While stressing the importance of early withdrawal of Russian military presence on the axis Poti / Senaki.
• August 23 - Russia declared the withdrawal of its forces to lines it asserted fulfilled the six points: into Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and the "security corridor" around South Ossetia. The bulk of its forces left Georgian soil altogether; yet, checkpoint installations remained on the main road from Tbilisi to Poti where it passed within 8 kilometers of South Ossetia; two Russian outposts remained outside Poti.
• August 26 through August 29 - UN program UNOSAT published a series of satellite images which showed the extent of the Georgian bombardment of the civilian targets with a disclaimer that this is an initial damage assessment and has not yet been independently validated on the ground. Later, the Human Rights Watch used the images to support the claim of widespread torching of ethnic Georgian villages inside South Ossetia.

Peace plan: Roadmap to end of military hostilities

Demands to end conflict

On 7 August 2008, a few hours before Georgia began its main offensive operation, Saakashvili ordered a unilateral ceasefire and called for talks "in any format"; reaffirmed the long-standing offer of full autonomy for South Ossetia; proposed that Russia should guarantee that solution; offered a general amnesty; and pleaded for international intercession to stop the hostilities. On 10 August Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin ruled out peace talks with Georgia until it pulled back its forces beyond the borders of South Ossetia and signed a legally binding pact renouncing the use of force against South Ossetia and Abkhazia, another breakaway territory of Georgia.

Ceasefire

On 11 August, Russian President Medvedev hinted at an end to the conflict saying, "A significant part of the operation to force the Georgian authorities to make peace in South Ossetia has been concluded," and "Tskhinvali is under the control of a reinforced Russian peacekeeping contingent." Russian Prime Minister Putin added Moscow would take its mission in the region to "a logical conclusion." Later the same day, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili signed an EU-backed ceasefire, but the document was rejected by Moscow. According to a Reuters witness, Georgian troops did not cease fire, as six helicopters attacked Tskhinvali on 11 August. An Associated Press reporter saw 135 Russian military vehicles, including tanks, driving toward the Kodori Gorge, held by Georgian forces. The acting Georgian ambassador to Britain told Sky News that Russian jets bombed civilian targets in Georgia despite Moscow's announcement that the war had ended.

On 12 August 2008 at 09:00 UTC Russian president and Russian Army Supreme Commander-in-Chief Dmitry Medvedev stated that the "peace enforcing operation in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone" was over. Later, Russian General Staff Deputy Chief Anatoliy Nogovitsyn said armed actions would stop, but reconnaissance operations would continue.

On 13 August, a reporter for the UK The Guardian stated that "the idea there is a ceasefire is ridiculous," and that he could see villages near Gori burning, amidst claims that Chechen, Cossack and Ossetian irregulars were advancing through Georgian villages. CNN reported that journalists in Gori said they had seen no Russian tanks, contrary to claims by the Georgian president. According to Sky News, Georgia's deputy interior minister said "I'd like to calm everybody down. The Russian military is not advancing towards the capital." The same report said "Sky News correspondents Stuart Ramsay and Jason Farrell confirmed there were tanks in Gori, which has suffered extensively from Russian bombing raids" Al Jazeera reported a "continuous build up" of Russian forces in Poti throughout the day, and the destruction of several Georgian vessels. Russia's deputy chief of General Staff Colonel-General Anatoliy Nogovitsyn said sporadic clashes continued in South Ossetia between Georgian snipers and Russian troops. "We must respond to provocations," he said. On 19 August Medvedev said that Russia will pull its troops in Georgia back to the positions set out in the ceasefire agreement on 22 August.

Six-point peace plan

On 12 August Russian President Medvedev met the President-in-Office of the European Union, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and approved a six-point peace plan. Late that night Georgian President Saakashvili agreed to the text. Sarkozy's plan originally had just the first four points. Russia added the fifth and sixth points. Georgia asked for the additions in parentheses, but Russia rejected them, and Sarkozy convinced Georgia to agree to the unchanged text.

1. No recourse to the use of force.

2. Definitive cessation of hostilities.

3. Free access to humanitarian aid (addition rejected: and to allow the return of refugees).

4. The Armed Forces of Georgia must withdraw to their permanent positions.

• 4. Georgian military forces must withdraw to their normal bases of encampment.

5. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation must withdraw to the line where they were stationed prior to the beginning of hostilities. Prior to the establishment of international mechanisms the Russian peacekeeping forces will take additional security measures.

• 5. Russian military forces must withdraw to the lines prior to the start of hostilities. While awaiting an international mechanism, Russian peacekeeping forces will implement additional security measures (addition rejected: six months).

6. An international debate on the future status of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and ways to ensure their lasting security will take place.

• 6. Opening of international discussions on the modalities of lasting security in Abkhazia and South Ossetia (addition rejected: based on the decisions of the UN and the OSCE).

According to RIA Novosti, "Sarkozy told a briefing after talks with his Georgian counterpart that the deal also includes some changes requested by Georgia... 'we have removed the issue of South Ossetia's status from the document'". But the The New York Times, citing a Georgian negotiator, reported that Sarkozy convinced Georgia to accept the Russian version unchanged, after Medvedev waited two hours to return his phone call and then rejected the proposed changes. The U.S. newspaper further asserted that the fifth point was crucial, and Russia used it to justify continuing hostilities into Georgia proper after the agreement. The International Herald Tribune reported on 15 August 2008, that the agreement included a letter from Sarkozy, clarifying a provision that allowed Russia a continued military presence outside the separatist regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, said Giga Bokeria, Georgia's deputy foreign minister. The letter stated that Russia's permission to conduct continued security operations in Georgia does not extend to populated areas or the main east-west highway that is the country's lifeline, Bokeria said. On 14 August Medvedev met with South Ossetia President Eduard Kokoity and Abkhazia President Sergei Bagapsh, where they signed the six principles.

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe has 200 personnel in the area, of which nine are military observers. OSCE is preparing to send 100 more observers to monitor the ceasefire, of which 20 are to be deployed immediately. On 18 August, Russia also initially opposed the deployment of 100 new observers into the region, but later accepted them. There have been difficulties with delivering humanitarian aid to the area, because OSCE personnel were initially blocked access into Tskhinvali or Gori by Russian forces and various irregulars, according to the head of the OSCE mission to Georgia. The Russian-backed South Ossetian president Kokotyi has also refused to accept international peacekeepers. European Union and OSCE leaders have stated that Russia is not abiding by international treaties it has ratified and is increasing international tensions by keeping unilateral "security zones", i.e. Russian zones of occupations, in the undisputed territory of Georgia.

Russian statements on withdrawal

On 17 August 2008, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev stated that Russia would begin to withdraw its troops on August 18, 2008.

On 19 August, Reuters reported that the Kremlin had said that Russian troops would pull back from Georgia's heartland by the end of the week. A Russian officer said that "today we can say that the process has started," although the withdrawal from Gori might be slowed down by badly congested roads. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he expected the withdrawal to pre-conflict positions to be completed within three to four days. As of the 19th, Russian checkpoints still blocked the main east-west highway linking Tbilisi with Georgia's Black Sea ports. Also on the 19th, President Dmitry Medvedev said that by August 22, Russia would pull its troops in Georgia back to the positions set out in a French-brokered ceasefire agreement. Later that day, the BBC reported that Medvedev had told French President Nicolas Sarkozy that the pull-out would be complete by 21-22 August, with the exception of some 500 troops, who would be installed in peacekeeping posts on either side of South Ossetia's border.

On 20 August, Russian spokesmen made a number of statements: One, speaking to the Moscow Times anonymously at the Kremlin, announced the small troop movement then under way, but explained that it was a "pullback", not a "withdrawal". Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy chief of the Russian military's General Staff, said that Russia would hold "buffer zones" around South Ossetia and Abkhazia; the latter would include the Georgian city of Senaki. Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy chief of the Russian army general staff, told reporters that Russia would establish 18 long-term checkpoints inside Georgian territory, including at least eight within undisputed Georgian territory, with one just outside the Georgian city of Gori.

On 21 August, The Times reported that Nogovitsyn had said: “The pullback has started at such a pace that by the end of 22 August all the forces of the Russian Federation will be behind the line of our zone of responsibility.” It also reported that Russian checkpoints were still in operation within 25 miles of Tbilisi, and that local military sources were suggesting that it could take up to two weeks for troops to be withdrawn in accordance with the ceasefire agreement brokered by Sarkozy. "Pulling out this much equipment takes time," said a spokesman for the Russian government traveling with journalists through occupied Georgian territory. "If you want me to estimate how much time, I'd say a couple of weeks before you see a major pullout."

On 22 August, Reuters reported that, as Russian soldiers were beginning to leave Gori, the extent of the final Russian withdrawal was in doubt; Moscow insisting that it would maintain checkpoints in an unspecified area adjacent to South Ossetia inside Georgia proper. Russian sources cited the Joint Control Commission report of 1999, which provided for a 5 mile (8 km) "security corridor" around South Ossetia which peacekeepers could patrol. Russia says that this provision implies authority to keep its troops on at least parts of Georgia's main east-west highway. "All activities of the Russian peacekeeping contingent are based on the six principles that were signed in agreement by the presidents of Russia and France," said Nogovitsyn, in Moscow. He said that Russian troops would patrol and keep control over Poti, Georgia's main commercial port.

On 23 August, Russia’s Ria news agency reported that Nogovitsyn had said that Poti was not in the buffer zone, but that Russian troops would continue to patrol the city.

Recognition of breakaway regions

Main article: International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia independence

On 25 August 2008, the Federal Assembly of Russia unanimously voted to urge President Medvedev to recognise Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states. On the following day, Medvedev agreed, signing a decree officially recognizing the two entities. Georgia has rejected this move outright as an annexation of its territory;

Infrastructure damage

1993 map showing the defense industries of Georgia at the time: Tbilaviamsheni, an aircraft assembly plant in Tbilisi which was bombed during the war, and component plants in other cities.

Georgia claimed Russia had bombed airfields and civil and economic infrastructure, including the Black Sea port of Poti. Between eight and eleven Russian jets reportedly hit container tanks and a shipbuilding plant at the port. Reuters reported an attack on the civilian Tbilisi International Airport, though Russia claimed otherwise. Georgian State Minister for Reintegration Temur Iakobashvili also denied this, reportedly stating, "There was no attack on the airport in Tbilisi. It was a factory that produces combat airplanes."

According to Russia, about 20% of the Tskhinvali's buildings have suffered various damage, including 10% of "beyond repair". Russia's military claimed the retreating Georgian forces have mined civilian infrastructure in South Ossetia.

Humanitarian impact

According to an 18 August report by Human Rights Watch (HRW), at the start of the military conflict on 7 August 2008, Georgian military used indiscriminate and disproportionate force resulting in civilian deaths in South Ossetia. The Russian military has since used indiscriminate force in attacks in South Ossetia and in the Gori district, and has apparently targeted convoys of civilians attempting to flee the conflict zones. HRW said that ongoing looting, arson attacks, and abductions by militia are terrorizing the civilian population, forcing them to flee their homes and preventing displaced people from returning home.

The organisation called the conflict a disaster for civilians, and said an international security mission should be deployed to help protect civilians and create a safe environment for the displaced to return home. HRW also called for international organisations to send fact-finding missions to establish the facts, report on human rights, and urge the authorities to account for any crimes.

One correspondent of Pervy kanal, witnessing live the Georgian incursion on Tskhinvali recounts that the heavy artillery had fired at the quarters with civilians, at hospitals and on the Russian peacekeepers, which stunningly are there on Georgian request, the Georgian army had not used any precise weapons and had not aimed at the military targets, but fired at random, trying to obliterate Tskhinvali and all of its inhabitants from the Earth. According to him their motivation was: Tskhinvali is the only city in south Ossetia, if it ceases to exists, so will the republic too.

South Ossetians

Tskinvali after fighting

On 8 August the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) urged the combatants to make a humanitarian corridor to evacuate the wounded and civilians from Tskhinvali. The fighting interrupted electricity and telephone service in Tskhinvali, and some inhabitants sheltered in basements with no access to water or medicines. Russian media reported on 9 August that several journalists were hiding in the basements, as they appealed to world society for a peace corridor to let them out of Tskhinvali. On 10 August the Russian Ambassador in Tbilisi claimed that "at least 2,000" people had been killed, and the chief of Russian ground forces said that the Georgian shelling has destroyed "all the hospitals" in Tskhinvali. However, it turned out that the city hospital, which was hit in the roof by a single Grad rocket, did not collapse at all; the rocket damaged part of the second and third floors. The hospital continued to operate in the building's basement until 13 August, when all the patients were evacuated to Russia.

According to western media who arrived in the city and were toured by the Russian military on 12 August, "[s]everal residential areas seemed to have little damage", while the heaviest hit appeared to be buildings in and near the government district. Despite the early claims that "the city was burnt to the ground, leveled. (...) like Stalingrad", on 17 August Russia reported that 20% of some 7,000 buildings in Tskhinvali suffered any damage, with 1/10 of buildings being beyond repair.

From 8 to 13 August, the Tskhinvali hospital treated 273 wounded, both military and civilians. Forty-four bodies had been brought to the hospital; these represented the majority of Ossetians killed in Tskhinvali, because the city morgue was not functioning due to the lack of electricity. On 14 August South Ossetian officials claimed they have identified 200 corpses of South Ossetian civilians, saying that 500 are missing; at the same time, Russian investigators said they had identified a total of 60 civilians killed during the fighting. By 18 August, following an investigation in South Ossetia and amongst refugees, the number of dead civilians identified was put by Russia at 133; nevertheless, South Ossetian officials said 1,492 people died.. On a Russian blog the higher number was defended by an eye witness.

South Ossetian women and children in a refugee camp set up in the town of Alagir, North Ossetia. Photo by Mikhail Evstafiev

The UN refugee agency, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said that thousands of refugees left South Ossetia, mostly for North Ossetia-Alania in Russia within the first days of the conflict. On 10 August, HRW obtained official figures on the number of displaced persons tallied by the Russian government agency in Vladikavkaz, according to which, the Federal Migration Service registered 24,032 persons who crossed the border from South Ossetia into Russia. However, 11,190 of those went back after the Russian intervention in the war; the government stated that “the overall number [of the displaced] was decreasing because of the people who return to join to volunteer militias of South Ossetia”; furthermore, the figures cannot be considered accurate, as many people cross the border back and forth and thus get registered two or more times. On 15 August the UNHCR, relying on figures provided by Georgian and Russian officials, said at least 30,000 South Ossetians have fled across the border into North Ossetia. On 16 August Russia put this number at over 10,000 refugees, indicating that majority has already returned.

HRW entered the mostly deserted Tskhinvali on 13 August and reported that it saw numerous apartment buildings and houses damaged by shelling. It said some of them had been hit by "inherently indiscriminate" weapons that should not be used in areas populated by civilians, such as rockets most likely fired from BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launchers. Since Georgian and Russian forces use identical Soviet-era weapons systems including Grad rockets, HRW couldn't definitely attribute specific battle damage to a particular belligerent, but witness accounts and the timing of the damage would point to Georgian fire accounting for much of the damage. In Tskhinvali, HRW saw numerous severely damaged civilian objects, including a hospital, apartment buildings, houses, schools, kindergartens, shops, administrative buildings, and the university. However, the group also noted that Ossetian militias in some neighborhoods took up defensive positions inside civilian apartment buildings, which drew fire from Georgian forces.

On 18 August South Ossetians alleged that they "estimate 500 Ossetian civilians were kidnapped and taken away by Georgian forces from the south of Tskhinvali". Georgian government answered: "They want to exchange [Georgian hostages] for our hostages. The problem is we don't have any hostages so we can't do any exchange." By 20 August the South Ossetian estimate was scaled down to some 170 "peaceful citiziens" allegedly held by Georgia.

On August 26, Russian investigators said they found evidence of genocide by the Georgian military against South Ossetians. The Head of Russia's Investigative Committee, Aleksandr Bastrykin, said that witnesses reported that Georgian soldiers were throwing cluster bombs into shelters where civilians were hiding. He also said that investigators came across the body of a pregnant women shot in the head.

Georgian refugees from South Ossetia asking for help outside the Georgian Parliament in Tbilisi on 10 August 2008.

Georgians

Most refugees in the conflict are ethnic Georgians. Before the war started, one estimate of the population of Georgians living in South Ossetia was 18,000 people, or one quarter of the population of the break-away republic. On 15 August UNHCR said that up to 15,000 ethnic Georgians have fled into the other parts of Georgia from South Ossetia. In addition, as of 15 August, some 73,000 people were displaced in Georgia proper (most of them from the city Gori); many also fled from Abkhazia. Most had no possessions with them, save for the clothes they were wearing when they fled, and were crammed into makeshift centres without even basic amenities. By 19 August the UNHCR figure of the displaced persons rose to 158,000, the vast majority of them ethnic Georgians.

Between 9 and 12 August, residential districts and a media center in the Georgian city of Gori were attacked by Russian Air Force, killing and injuring numerous civilians (including several journalists, among them the Dutch cameraman Stan Storimans who died). On 15 August U.S. Human Rights Watch said it had collected evidence of Russian warplanes using RBK-250 cluster bombs, each containing 30 PTAB 2.5M submunitions; rights group urged Russia to stop using the weapons, which 107 nations have agreed to outlaw. On the same day, Russian General Nogovitsyn claimed: "We never use cluster bombs. There is no need to do so." During the final strikes, an air-to-ground missile smashed into the Gori hospital with deadly effect. On August 21, HRW reported that civilians continued to be killed and injured later due to contact with unexploded cluster munitions in Gori and at other locations.. Georgian military used Israeli-made M85 cluster munition against targets in South Ossetia, but according to the Georgian Ministry of Defense they were used only on military targets. According to statement wich was announced on September 1, "Human Rights Watch has not independently confirmed this information, but has reported Russia’s use of cluster munitions during the fighting" ... it "is continuing to investigate use of cluster munitions by both Georgia and Russia."

File:Gori residential district after Russian air strikes.jpg

Destroyed residential building in Gori

On 10 August Georgia charged that ethnic cleansing of Georgians was occurring behind Russian lines. On 12 August HRW researchers in South Ossetia claimed that they witnessed at least four ethnic Georgian villages still burning from fires set by South Ossetian militias and witnessed looting by the militias. A HRW researcher said that "the remaining residents of these destroyed ethnic Georgian villages are facing desperate conditions, with no means of survival, no help, no protection, and nowhere to go." On 13 August an interviewed South Ossetian officer said that the separatist forces "burned these houses (...) to make sure that they [the Georgians] can’t come back." HRW also learned from an Ossetian officer about the summary execution of a Georgian combatant, and that the looters, who were "everywhere" in the Georgian villages in South Ossetia, have been "now moving to Gori".

On 12 August Associated Press (AP, U.S. source) journalists toured by the Russian military through Tskhinvali claimed that they witnessed numerous fires in what appeared to be deserted ethnic Georgian neighborhoods and saw evidence of looting in those areas; they said that while a Russian army officer touring claimed said some of the buildings had been burning for days from the fighting, in fact none of the houses was burning before more than 24 hours after the battle for the city was over. By14 August, already after the official ceasefire, many international media outlets reported Georgian government and refugee stories that Ossetian and often also other pro-Russian irregulars (including reports of Cossack and Chechen paramilitaries, and even some Russian regular soldiers) were looting and burning Georgian villages in South Ossetia and near Gori. Some of the emerging stories featured reports of atrocities, including kidnapping, rape and indiscriminate murder. These reports could not be independently confirmed; as BBC News summed it up on 14 August, "The testimonies of those who have fled villages around South Ossetia are consistent, but with all roads blocked and the Russian military now in charge of the area, the scale of alleged reprisal killings and lootings is difficult to verify." The new waves of Georgian refugees bringing reports of the widespread pillage and "revenge" killings in the territories occupied by the Russian forces kept coming over the next days.

On 13 August Russian interior minister Rashid Nurgaliev said there would be "decisive and tough" measures taken against looters; according to Russia's Interfax, two looters were executed by firing squad in South Ossetia. Nevertheless, on 15 August, The Daily Telegraph reporter witnessed South Ossetian irregulars continuing to loot and pillage around Gori, often with the encouragement of Russian troops, including a Russian officer shouting to "take whatever you want." Vehicles were even carjacked from the UN aid officials by paramiliaries while Russian soldiers watched. According to HRW, Russian military had indeed blocked the road from Java to Tskhinvali in an effort to prevent further attacks there, and by 14 August, researchers saw no more fires in this area; however, looting and burning of Georgian villages has continued in ethnic Georgian villages in Georgia's Gori district. On August 13, Major General Vyacheslav Borisov, the Russian commander in Georgia, was quoted as saying that "now Ossetians are running around and killing poor Georgians in their enclaves." Also on 15 August, the Russia-allied president Eduard Kokoity of South Ossetia, in the interview for Kommersant, officially acknowledged that the alleged ethnic cleansing of South Ossetia was in fact committed against ethnic Georgians, saying that his forces "offered them a corridor and gave the peaceful population the chance to leave" and that the Ossetians "do not intend to allow" their return.

Russian (Novaya Gazeta) and British (The Sunday Times) journalists embedded with the Russian and Ossetian forces reported that irregulars are abusing and executing captured Georgian soldiers and suspected combatants captured during the "mopping-up operations" in South Ossetia and beyond.

On 16 August an AP (American news agency) reporter witnessed groups of Georgian forced laborers in Tskhinvali under armed guard of Ossetians and Russians; South Ossetia's interior minister Mikhail Mindzayev acknowledged this, saying that the Georgians "are cleaning up after themselves." The Independent reported that around 40 Georgian civilian captives, mostly elderly men, were "paraded" through the city and abused by South Ossetians. On 18 August South Ossetian leaders put the number of the hostages at more than 130, roughly half of them women and mostly former Georgian guest workers. The kidnapping of civilians by warring parties is a war crime according to the Article 3 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

On 17 August HRW appealed to Russian authorities to "immediately take steps to end Ossetian militia attacks on ethnic Georgians" in the Gori district of Georgia and for the Russian military to ensure safe passage for civilians wishing to leave the region and for humanitarian aid agencies to enter. The organisation said hundreds of vulnerable civilians still in the area, including many elderly; they said they are afraid to leave after learning about militia attacks on those who fled. The UN, which has described the humanitarian situation in the Russian military-controlled Gori as "desperate," has been able to deliver only limited food supplies to the city.

The Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs and the OSCE chairman Alexander Stubb twice visited the war-affected area in Georgia and accused the Russian troops of "clearly trying to empty southern Ossetia of Georgians."

On August 27, the French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner accused the Russian troops of "ethnic cleansing, creating a homogeneous South Ossetia."

On August 29 2008, the recently returned IDPs to the villages north of Gori which are still under the Russian military control had to flee a renewed harassments by the South Ossetian militias. The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said that some 2,300 Georgian villagers arrived in Gori because of security concerns. The UNHCR official reported that that Russian forces had set up 18 checkpoints between Gori and South Ossetia, which were "an obstacle to the humanitarian relief effort and to people trying to return to their homes."

Humanitarian response

Main article: Humanitarian response to the 2008 South Ossetia war

Reactions to the conflict

International reaction

Main article: International reaction to the 2008 South Ossetia war

See also: Protests regarding 2008 South Ossetia war and Controversy over Abkhazian and South Ossetian independence

Russia faced strong criticism from the US, the United Kingdom, Poland, Sweden and the Baltic states; US Vice President Dick Cheney stated "Russian aggression must not go unanswered, and that its continuation would have serious consequences for its relations with the United States, as well as the broader international community."

The unilateral recognition by Russia was met by condemnation from NATO, the UN Secretary-General, the OSCE Chairman, the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the European Commission, Foreign Ministers of the G7, and the government of Ukraine due to alleged violation of Georgia's territorial integrity, and United Nations Security Council resolutions. Russia claims that its recognition policy was supported by the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation although the SCO Group didn't back it explicitly.

German Spiegel online separately reported, on August 30 2008 that OSCE observers were blaming Georgia for triggering the crisis in a series of unofficial reports presented to the German government..

OSCE spokesman Martin Nesirky rejected the claim, saying "none of" its regular reports distributed to 56 members through diplomatic channels "contains information of the kind mentioned in the Der Spiegel story".

The Swedish government stated on August 11 2008 "that Russia's conduct in Georgia is unacceptable and contravenes the international regulatory framework." Carl Bildt , foreign minister of Sweden and Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, was quoted, Russia's claims it was defending Russian citizens in Southossetia "recalled Hitler’s justifications of Nazi invasions".

Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel called on both sides on August 13 2008 "to suspend all hostilities and to respect the territorial integrity of Georgia." On August 15 2008 German Government stated that "territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia is not open to negotiation for the German government." The military attaché of German embassy in Moscow stated in an internal document of August 11 2008 that "Russian response to Georgia was appropriate".

Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Franco Frattini stated "We cannot create an anti-Russia coalition in Europe, and on this point we are close to Putin's position".

Judicial reaction

On 12 August 2008 Georgia instituted proceedings in the International Court of Justice against Russia for violations of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. The case (Georgia v. Russian Federation) was accepted by the court on 15 August. The first public hearings are planned on 8 September 2008.

Financial market reaction

The effect of the war on the Russian financial markets was first noticed on the stock market benchmark index RTS which fell 6% by August 8, 2008 at 12:45 GMT in its lowest level (1,732.26) since May 2007, including blue chips such as Lukoil Holdings shares, and Russian analysts expect the fall to continue for some time but then to rise upwards again, recovering losses. The Russian ruble also fell by 1% relative to a basket of currencies.

The Georgian financial markets also suffered negative consequences as Fitch Ratings lowered Georgia's debt ratings from BB- to B+, commenting that there are increased risks to Georgian sovereign creditworthiness, while Standard and Poor's also lowered Georgian credit ratings.

Map of Baku-Supsa and Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipelines through Georgia

While Georgia has no significant oil or gas reserves on its own, it is an important transit route that supplies the West, and journalists expressed fear that the war may damage the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, 30% of which is owned by BP. The BTC pipeline was shut down before the conflict because of the blast in Turkey on August 6, 2008, that was threatened and then claimed by the PPK' and the war created further problems for the operating company Botas International Ltd. Georgia claims Russia is targeting the pipeline. On August 8, 2008, Russian air forces devastated the port of Poti, which the Georgian government calls "a key port for the transportation of energy sources," close to the Baku-Supsa pipeline and the Supsa oil terminal. On August 12, 2008, BP, an operator of the main pipelines through Georgia, closed the BTC pipeline, the Baku-Supsa Pipeline and the South Caucasus Pipeline for the safety reasons. Gas supplies through the South Caucasus Pipeline were resumed on August 14, 2008.

The price of oil was not negatively affected by these events, on August 8, 2008 light sweet crude for September delivery settled down $4.82 to $115.20 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Media coverage

Territories controlled by the breakaway republics of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno-Karabakh at the end of August 2008

Main article: Disinformation campaign during the 2008 South Ossetian war

An extensive information war was conducted during the military conflict.

Cyberattacks and censorship

South Ossetian officials stated that two Ossetian news media sites were attacked. Dmitry Medoyev, the South Ossetian secessionist envoy in Moscow, claimed that Georgia was trying to cover up reports of deaths.

The National Bank of Georgia website was defaced and replaced with a gallery of 20th century dictators, also featuring Saakashvili. Georgian Internet news portals and governmental websites, including those of the Ministry of Defence and the Presidential Office, were under sustained denial-of-service attacks from August 11 through 12. The Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs website was defaced and replaced with a collage of Saakashvili-and-Hitler photographs. According to The New York Times, Georgian websites crashed frequently on August 8.

Estonian media claimed that the attacks are similar in nature to the 2007 cyberattacks on Estonia and were carried out with the same techniques. Estonian authorities have pledged to provide Georgia assistance in cyber-warfare. Estonia has sent to Georgia two specialists in information security from the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) Estonia, and Georgia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs website is currently hosted on an Estonian server. The Office of the President of Poland has provided the website for dissemination of information and helped to get access to the Internet for Georgia's government after breakdowns of local servers caused by cyberattacks.

Georgia had stopped broadcasting Russian television channels across the country. Websites hosted on domains with addresses ending in the ccTLD .ru "were briefly blocked" from Georgia. Some pro-Russian sites in other zones were also reported to be blocked. Both actions were taken due to Georgia's belief that Russia was conducting an information war.

RIA Novosti news agency's website was disabled for several hours on August 10 by a series of computer cracker attacks. "The DNS-servers and the site itself have been coming under severe attack," said Maxim Kuznetsov, head of the RIA Novosti IT department. On August 11, Russia Today TV stated: "In the course of the last 24 hours RT’s website (www.russiatoday.com) has endured numerous DDoS attacks, which have made it unavailable for some time. Channel’s security specialists say the initial attack was carried out from an IP-address registered in the Georgian capital Tbilisi.

The Russian internet news service Gazeta.ru reported that the Fox News channel cut off an American-Ossetian girl, Amanda Kokoeva, after stating that she was attacked by Georgian forces and saved by the Russians, although this is not shown in the Fox News interview. The New York Times published an article about the interview discrediting the claims of biased treatment. Fox News was also accused of censorship by the television channel Russia Today TV which showed its own interview with Amanda and earlier by several internet blogs and forums.

Military situation in the Black Sea

According to Russia, the NATO military alliance has increased its naval presence in the Black Sea substantially (since the war in Georgia broke out) to around ten vessels, outnumbering the Russian fleet near the Georgian coast. Eight more warships were en route less than three weeks after hostile engagements had ended. Russia is concerned that NATO is building up its forces in the region and questioned why a US military ship (the USS McFaul) was required to deliver humanitarian aid to Georgia, accusing the country of shipping weapons into Georgia.

According to the US navy, the ship delivered baby food, care supplies, bottled water and milk to Georgia. Additionally, NATO stressed that its presence in the Black Sea area is not related to the current tensions, that the vessels are conducting routine port visits and naval exercises with Romania and Bulgaria.

The Russian General Anatoly Nogovitsyn elaborated on Moscow's position, saying that NATO has exhausted the number of forces it is allowed to have in the Black Sea, under the 1936 Montreux convention, which among other stipulations limits the total tonnage of military ships in the Black Sea. He also warned Western nations against sending more ships and said that the Russian navy is ordered to monitor the ships' activities in the region.

Also in response to the war, Viktor Yushchenko, the president of Ukraine, said he intended to negotiate increasing the rent on the Russian naval base at Sevastopol in the Crimea. On the other hand, the Abkhazian government said it would invite Russia to establish a naval base in the port of Sukhumi. According to Russia, any re-negotiation of the use of the Ukraine naval base would break a 1997 agreement, under which Russia leases the base for $98 million a year until 2017.

Combatants

See also: Military of Georgia and Military of Russia

Military equipment

Georgian, Russian and South Ossetian forces are equipped with predominantly Soviet-made weapons, in particular, Sukhoi Su-25 attack aircraft, T-55 and T-72 tanks, and AK-74 rifles; however, Georgia has recently also been acquiring some western-made weaponry, including the UH-1 Iroquois helicopters and M4 Carbine rifles from the United States, 152mm SpGH DANA self-propelled guns and RM-70 Multiple rocket launchers from the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Turkish Otokar Cobra armoured vehicles, and German Heckler & Koch G36 and Israeli IMI Tavor TAR-21 rifles. Georgian Ministry of Defense released a press statement, that "the Georgian armed forces have GRADLAR 160 multiple launch rocket systems and MK4 LAR 160 type (with M85 bomblets) rockets with a range of 45 kilometers". Ukraine has supplied Georgia with weapons, reportedly including AA missiles, Armoured Personnel Carriers and small arms.

Georgian order of battle

As of 8 August 2008, Georgia had a total armed Forces Personnel of 26,900, 82 T-72 Main Battle Tanks, 139 Armoured Personnel Carriers (BMP and BTR variants), 7 Combat aircraft (Su-25 ground attack) and 95 Heavy artillery pieces (including Grad BM-21 122mm multiple rocket launchers), according to Jane's Sentinel Country Risk Assessments.

• 1st Brigade - Re-deployed from Iraq to Georgia. It was deployed to defend the Capital from Russian troops.
• 2nd Brigade - Suffered heavy losses in the Battle of the Kodori Valley.
• 3rd Brigade - Supported 4th Brigade's advances on South Ossetia. Survived the battle relatively intact.
• 4th Brigade - Most powerful of Georgia's Brigades. Spearheaded the attack onto South Ossetia. Suffered heavy loses in men and equipment.
• 5th Brigade - Kept in reserve, deployed in defensive position after Russian incursions into Gori

In the combat for Tskhinvali, Georgia reportedly committed several infantry battalions supported by T-72 tanks and artillery. The Georgian Air Force has also been engaged in the conflict. Following the Russian response, Georgia recalled all 2,000 of its troops that had been stationed in Iraq. The troops and their equipment were transported by the United States Air Force using C-17 Globemaster aircraft. American trainers claimed that the Georgian military was unready for combat. While official statistics claim 215 fatalities, soldiers and civilians, the number of dead or missing soldiers is probably higher. According to an "Intelligence Briefing" published at an independent news website, the 1st and 2nd Brigade, the Independent Tank Battalion with headquarters at Gori and most of Georgia's front line artillery units are no longer combat capable.

Alleged foreign mercenaries and instructors

According to Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman, 127 U.S. military trainers including 35 civilian contractors still in Georgia were not at risk after, along with another 1,000 US soldiers, who participated in military exercise "Immediate Response 2008". Lt. Col. John Dorrian, EUCOM spokesman stated that "They are safe and not engaged (in this conflict)" and "Obviously those training activities are suspended at this point" According to EUCOM’s Lt. Cmdr. Corey Barker soldiers were still in the country after training exercise ended Thursday, though nowhere near the conflict.
In Security Council meeting 5953 on August 10^th, Vitaly Churkin stated: "according to my information at least 127 advisers from the United States Department of Defense alone are working in Georgia at the present time."
Radio Ossetia reported that an Afro-American U.S. citizen, assumed to be a NATO instructor, was arrested amongst a group of Georgian explosives experts near the village of Zar. A high-ranked officer of Russia’s military intelligence claimed that 2,500 to 3,000 mercenaries, commanded and coordinated by around 1,000 US military instructors, were fighting on Georgia's behalf.
A lady interviewed on the streets of Tskhinvali had testified to seeing two dead bodies with U.S. flags patched on their fore-arms Dimitry Medoev said “There were blacks among the dead, who were probably either mercenaries or instructors in the Georgian armed forces”.The head of the FSB, Alexander Bortnikov, reported on the 11th that "10 agents of the Georgian special services who were spying on military facilities and preparing terrorist attacks" had been arrested and that 12 foreign mercenaries had entered Russia's North Caucasus Republic of Dagestan.
The U.S. European Command, on Aug. 11^th, said that there were no plans at that time to withdraw 127 U.S. military trainers still in Georgia. "
The presence of US military in the combat zone was further alleged in an interview Vladimir Putin gave to CNN. While Colonel General Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy chief of the general staff, had demonstrated an enlarged colour photocopy of an American passport allegedly found near Tskhinval. The owner of the passport was identified as Michael Lee White, a resident of Houston, born in 1967. Later the alleged owner of the passport was contacted in Guangzhou, China, where he was guest lecturing at Guangdong University of Business Studies. He claimed his passport was stolen in a Moscow airport in 2005. The U.S. State Department confirmed that Mr. White had reported his passport missing in 2005 and had issued him a new one.

Russian order of battle

South Ossetian Sector

• Unnamed units formerly used for peacekeeping
• At least two strengthened battalions of 19th Motor Rifle Division (North Ossetia) of 58th Army.
• Units of Airborne Troops (VDV)
  • Units of 76th Airborne Division (Pskov)
  • Units of 98th Airborne Division (Ivanovo)
• Units of GRU (direct or operational subordination)
  • Spetsnaz of 45th Detached Reconnaissance Regiment of VDV (Moscow)
  • One company of Special Battalion Vostok of 42nd Motor Rifle Division (Chechnya)
  • One company of Special Battalion Zapad of 42nd Motor Rifle Division (Chechnya)
• Army of South Ossetia

Abkhazian Sector

• Units of 131st Separate Motor-Rifle Brigade (formerly used for peacekeeping)
• Unnamed units of VDV
• Army (land and air forces) of Abkhazia
• Naval Task Force consisting of following units from the Black Sea Fleet
  • Slava Class Cruiser RFS Moskva
  • Kashin Class (Upgraded) Destroyer Smetlivy (Template:Lang-ru)
  • Alligator Class Landing Ships Saratov.
  • Ropucha-I Class Landing Ships Caesar Kunikov and Yamal.
  • Grisha-V Anti-Submarine Corvettes Kasimov, Povarino and Suzdalets.
  • Nanuchka-III Class Corvette Mirazh.
  • Bora Class Missile Boat Samum
  • Moma Class Surveillance ship Ekvator.
  • Natya Class Minesweepers Zhukov and Turbinist.
  • Small Landing Ship Koida
  • Sorum Class Fleet Tug MB-31.

Air support

• Fighter, attack, bomber and reconnaissance aircrafts of 4th Air Army (acting over South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Georgia)
• Unnamed transport aviation units used for air-lift of units of 76th and 98th Airborne Divisions, Spetsnaz of 45th Detached Reconnaissance Regiment to South Ossetia and unnamed units of VDV to Abkhazia

Other

• Russian news services, notably RTR Planeta, have reported wide-scoped assembly of Ossetian Narodnoe Opolcheniye being joined by volunteers from the Vladikavkaz region and other parts of Russia. The groups being formed at "various locations" are reported to range from "tens" to "hundreds." The members of these groups as shown on video reports are identified by white armbands, but appear to be otherwise clothed and equipped predominantly in Russian Army issue camouflage clothing and firearms. One such group in the Northern Ossetia has been formed on the Staff of North Ossetia okrug Cossack Voisko (Template:Lang-ru).

See also

• International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia independence
• Battle of the Kodori Valley
• Georgian–Abkhazian conflict
• Ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia
• Immediate Response 2008
• Caucasus Frontier 2008
• Vaziani Military Base
• Alliance for the Caucasus
• For Enforcing Peace
• Operation Assured Delivery

External links

Abkhazia

• Template:Ab icon Template:En icon Template:Ru icon Template:Tr icon President of the Republic of Abkhazia
• Template:Ab icon Template:En icon Template:Ru icon Template:Tr icon Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Abkhazia

Georgia

• "Timeline of Russian Aggression in Georgia". The government of Georgia. 2008-08-25. Retrieved 2008-08-30.
• Template:En icon Template:Ka icon Georgian Ministry of Defence
• Template:En icon Template:Ka icon Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Template:En icon Template:Ka icon President of Georgia

Russia

• Template:En icon Template:Ru icon Ministry of Defence of Russia
• Template:En icon Template:Fr icon Template:De icon Template:Ru icon Template:Es icon Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia
• Template:En icon Template:Ru icon President of Russia
• Template:En icon Template:Ru icon Permanent Mission of Russia to the United Nations

South Ossetia

• Template:En icon Template:Ru icon State Committee of Information and Press of the Republic of South Ossetia
• Template:En icon Template:Fr icon Template:Ru icon Ossetian News Agency "Osinform"

International

• Template:En icon United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia
• Template:En icon OSCE Mission to Georgia

Map resources

• Topographic maps of the region from Poyehali