Russian Aggression in Georgia and Ukraine

38.1.2: Russian Aggression in Georgia and Ukraine

The 2008 Russo-Georgian War and the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea, which violated the territorial integrity of Georgia and Ukraine respectively, demonstrated Russia’s willingness to wage a full-scale military campaign to attain its political objectives and revealed the weaknesses of the Western defense system.

Learning Objective

Describe the events surrounding Russia’s actions against Georgia and Ukraine

Key Points

  • The tensions between Georgia and Russia heightened during the secessionist conflicts in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, which led to the 1991-92 South Ossetia War and the 1992-1993 War in Abkhazia. The strategic importance of the Transcaucasia region has made it a security concern for Russia. Support for the Abkhaz from various groups within Russia including regular military units, and support for South Ossetia by their ethnic brethren who lived in Russia’s federal subject of North Ossetia, proved critical in the de facto secession of Abkhazia and South Ossetia from Georgia.
  • The conflict between Russia and Georgia began to escalate in 2000, when Russia imposed visa regime on Georgia. In 2001, Eduard Kokoity, endorsed by Russia, became de facto president of South Ossetia. The Russian government also began massive distribution of Russian passports to the residents of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 2002. After Georgia deported four suspected Russian spies in 2006, Russia began a full-scale diplomatic and economic war against Georgia. In 2008, Abkhazia and South Ossetia submitted formal requests for their recognition to Russia’s parliament.
  • By August 1, 2008, Ossetian separatists began shelling Georgian villages. To put an end to these attacks, the Georgian Army was sent to the South Ossetian conflict zone. Russian and Ossetian forces battled Georgian forces in and around South Ossetia and Russian and Abkhaz forces opened a second front. On August 17, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev announced that Russian forces would begin to pull out of Georgia the following day but several days later he recognized Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states. In accordance with the Georgian stand, many international actors recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia as occupied Georgian territories.
  • The 2008 war was the first time since the fall of the Soviet Union that the Russian military was used against an independent state, demonstrating Russia’s willingness to wage a full-scale military campaign to attain its political objectives. The failure of the Western security system to respond swiftly to Russia’s attempt to forcibly revise the existing borders revealed its weaknesses. Shortly after the war, Russian president Medvedev unveiled a five-point Russian foreign policy, which implied that the presence of Russian citizens in foreign countries would form a doctrinal foundation for invasion if needed.
  • Despite being an independent country since 1991, Russia has perceived Ukraine as part of its sphere of interests. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, both states retained close ties, but political, military, and economic tensions began almost immediately. Ukraine’s democratization in the aftermath of the 2004 Orange Revolution and increasingly close ties with NATO and the EU halted with the election of pro-Russian Yanukovich in 2010. When Yanukovich refused to sign an agreement with the EU, protests known as the Euromaidan movement broke out, eventually overthrowing Yanukovich’s government.
  • In the aftermath of the events, the Ukrainian territory of Crimea was annexed by Russia in March 2014. Since then, the peninsula has been administered as two de facto Russian federal subjects—the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol. The annexation was preceded by a military intervention by Russia in Crimea and followed by the War in Donbass. Many members of the international community condemned the annexation, with some imposing sanctions on Russia.

Key Terms

Russo-Georgian War
A war between Georgia, Russia and the Russian-backed self-proclaimed republics of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The war took place in August 2008 following a period of worsening relations between Russia and Georgia, both formerly constituent republics of the Soviet Union. The fighting took place in the strategically important Transcaucasia region, which borders the Middle East. It was regarded as the first European war of the 21st century.
War in Donbass
An armed conflict in the Donbass region of Ukraine. In March 2014, protests by pro-Russian and anti-government groups began in the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of Ukraine, together commonly called the Donbass, in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution and the Euromaidan movement. These demonstrations escalated into an armed conflict between the separatist forces of the self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics and the Ukrainian government.
Orange Revolution
A series of protests and political events that took place in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the run-off vote of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election, which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter intimidation, and direct electoral fraud. Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, was the focal point of the movement’s campaign of civil resistance, with thousands of protesters demonstrating daily. Nationwide, the democratic revolution was highlighted by a series of acts of civil disobedience, sit-ins, and general strikes organized by the opposition movement.
1991–92 South Ossetia War
A war fought as part of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict between Georgian government forces and ethnic Georgian militia on one side and the forces of South Ossetia and ethnic Ossetian militia who wanted South Ossetia to secede from Georgia on the other. The war ended with a Russian-brokered ceasefire, which established a joint peacekeeping force and left South Ossetia divided between the rival authorities.
Commonwealth of Independent States
A regional organization formed during the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Nine out of the 15 former Soviet Republics are member states and two are associate members (Ukraine and Turkmenistan). Georgia withdrew its membership in 2008, while the Baltic states (Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia) chose not to participate. The organization has few supranational powers but aims to be more than a purely symbolic organization, nominally possessing coordinating powers in the realms of trade, finance, lawmaking, and security.
1992-1993 War in Abkhazia
A war fought between Georgian government forces and Abkhaz separatist forces, Russian armed forces, and North Caucasian militants. Ethnic Georgians who lived in Abkhazia fought largely on the side of Georgian government forces. The separatists fighting for the autonomy of Abkhasia received support from thousands of North Caucasus and Cossack militants and from the Russian Federation forces stationed in and near Abkhazia.
Euromaidan
A wave of demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine that began on the night of November 21, 2013, with public protests in Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) in Kiev, demanding closer European integration. The scope of the protests expanded, with many calls for the resignation of President Viktor Yanukovich and his government. The protests led to the overthrow of Yanukovich’s government.

 

Background of Russo-Georgian Conflict

The tensions between Georgia and Russia, heightened even before the collapse of the Soviet Union, climaxed during the secessionist conflicts in South Ossetia and Abkhazia. From 1922 to 1990, the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast was an autonomous oblast (administrative unit) of the Soviet Union created within the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic. Its autonomy, however, was revoked in 1990 by the Georgian Supreme Council. In response, South Ossetia declared independence from Georgia in 1991. The crisis escalation led to the 1991-92 South Ossetia War. The separatists were aided by former Soviet military units, now under Russian command. In the aftermath of the war, some parts of the former South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast remained under the Georgian control while the Tskhinvali separatist authorities (the self-proclaimed Republic of South Ossetia) were in control of one-third of the territory of the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast.

Abkhasia, on the other hand, enjoyed autonomy within Soviet Georgia e when the Soviet Union began to disintegrate in the late 1980s. Simmering ethnic tensions between the Abkhaz, the region’s “titular ethnicity,” and Georgians, the largest single ethnic group at that time, culminated in the 1992-1993 War in Abkhazia, which resulted in Georgia’s loss of control of most of Abkhazia, the de facto independence of Abkhazia, and the mass exodus and ethnic cleansing of Georgians from Abkhazia. Despite the 1994 ceasefire agreement and years of negotiations, the dispute remained unresolved.

Russian Involvement

The region of Transcaucasia lies between the Russian region of the North Caucasus and the Middle East, forming a buffer zone between Russia and the Middle East and bordering Turkey and Iran. The strategic importance of the region has made it a security concern for Russia. Significant economic reasons, such as presence or transportation of oil, also affect Russian interest in Transcaucasia. Furthermore, Russia saw the Black Sea coast and the border with Turkey as invaluable strategic attributes of Georgia. Russia had more vested interests in Abkhazia than in South Ossetia, since the Russian military presence on the Black Sea coast was seen as vital to Russian influence in the Black Sea. Before the early 2000s, South Ossetia was originally intended as a tool to retain a grip on Georgia. Support for the Abkhaz from various groups within Russia such as the Confederation of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus, Cossacks, and regular military units, and support for South Ossetia by their ethnic brethren who lived in Russia’s federal subject of North Ossetia, proved critical in the de facto secession of Abkhazia and South Ossetia from Georgia.

Vladimir Putin became president of the Russian Federation in 2000, which had a profound impact on Russo-Georgian relations. The conflict between Russia and Georgia began to escalate in 2000, when Georgia became the first and only member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) on which the Russian visa regime was imposed. In 2001, Eduard Kokoity, an alleged member of organized crime, became de facto president of South Ossetia. He was endorsed by Russia since he would subvert the peaceful reintegration of South Ossetia into Georgia. The Russian government also began massive distribution of Russian passports to the residents of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 2002. This “passportization” policy laid the foundation for Russia’s future claim to these territories. In 2003, Putin began to consider the possibility of a military solution to the conflict with Georgia. After Georgia deported four suspected Russian spies in 2006, Russia began a full-scale diplomatic and economic war against Georgia, accompanied by the persecution of ethnic Georgians living in Russia. In 2008, Abkhazia and South Ossetia submitted formal requests for their recognition to Russia’s parliament. Dmitry Rogozin, Russian ambassador to NATO, warned that Georgia’s NATO membership aspirations would cause Russia to support the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The Russian State Duma adopted a resolution in which it called on the President of Russia and the government to consider the recognition.

Russo-Georgian War

By August 1, 2008, Ossetian separatists began shelling Georgian villages, with a sporadic response from Georgian peacekeepers in the region. To put an end to these attacks and restore order, the Georgian Army was sent to the South Ossetian conflict zone. Georgians took control of most of Tskhinvali, a separatist stronghold, within hours. Georgia later stated it was also responding to Russia moving non-peacekeeping units into the country. In response, Russia accused Georgia of “aggression against South Ossetia” and launched a large-scale land, air, and sea invasion of Georgia on August 8 with the stated aim of “peace enforcement” operation. Russian and Ossetian forces battled Georgian forces in and around South Ossetia for several days until they retreated. Russian and Abkhaz forces opened a second front by attacking the Kodori Gorge held by Georgia. Russian naval forces blockaded part of the Georgian coast. This was the first war in history in which cyber warfare coincided with military action. An active information war was waged during and after the conflict.

Russo-Georgian War, 2008

Russo-Georgian War, 2008:  The war displaced 192,000 people and while many returned to their homes after the war, 20,272 people remained displaced as of 2014. Russia has, since the war, occupied Abkhazia and South Ossetia in violation of the ceasefire agreement of August 2008. 

Impact

On August 17, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (who took office in May) announced that Russian forces would begin to pull out of Georgia the following day. The two countries exchanged prisoners of war. Russian forces withdrew from the buffer zones adjacent to Abkhazia and South Ossetia in October and authority over them was transferred to the European Union monitoring mission in Georgia. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that a military presence in Abkhazia and South Ossetia was essential to prevent Georgia from regaining control. Georgia considers Abkhazia and South Ossetia Russian-occupied territories. On August 25, 2008, the Russian parliament unanimously voted in favor of a motion urging President Medvedev to recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states, and a day later Medvedev signed decrees recognizing the two states. In 2011, the European Parliament passed a resolution recognizing Abkhazia and South Ossetia as occupied Georgian territories.

The recognition by Russia was condemned by many international actors, including the United States, France, the secretary-general of the Council of Europe, NATO, and the G7 on the grounds that it violated Georgia’s territorial integrity, United Nations Security Council resolutions, and the ceasefire agreement. Although Georgia has no significant oil or gas reserves, its territory hosts part of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline supplying Europe. The pipeline circumvents both Russia and Iran. Because it has decreased Western dependence on Middle Eastern oil, the pipeline has been a major factor in the United States’ support for Georgia.

The 2008 war was the first time since the fall of the Soviet Union that the Russian military had been used against an independent state, demonstrating Russia’s willingness to wage a full-scale military campaign to attain its political objectives. The failure of the Western security system to respond swiftly to Russia’s attempt to forcibly revise the existing borders revealed its weaknesses. Ukraine and other post-Soviet states received a clear message from the Russian leadership that the possible accession to NATO would cause a foreign invasion and the break-up of the country. The construction of the EU-sponsored Nabucco pipeline (connecting Central Asian reserves to Europe) in Transcaucasia was averted. The war eliminated Georgia’s prospects for joining NATO. The Georgian government severed diplomatic relations with Russia.

The war in Georgia showed Russia’s assertiveness in revising international relations and undermining the hegemony of the United States. Shortly after the war, Russian president Medvedev unveiled a five-point Russian foreign policy. The Medvedev Doctrine implied that the presence of Russian citizens in foreign countries would form a doctrinal foundation for invasion if needed. Medvedev’s statement that there were areas in which Russia had “privileged interests” underlined Russia’s particular interest in the former Soviet Union and the fact that Russia would feel endangered by subversion of local pro-Russian regimes.

Post-Soviet Russo-Ukrainian Relations

Despite being an independent country since 1991, Russia has perceived Ukraine as part of its sphere of interests. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, both states retained close ties, but tensions began almost immediately. There were several conflict points, most importantly Ukraine’s significant nuclear arsenal, which Ukraine agreed to abandon on the condition that Russia would issue an assurance against threats or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of Ukraine. A second point was the division of the Black Sea Fleet. Ukraine agreed to lease the Sevastopol port so that the Russian Black Sea fleet could continue to occupy it together with Ukraine. Furthermore, throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Ukraine and Russia engaged in several gas disputes. Russia was also further aggravated by the Orange Revolution of 2004, which saw pro-Western Viktor Yushchenko rise to power instead of pro-Russian Viktor Yanukovich. Ukraine also continued to increase its cooperation with NATO.

Pro-Russian Yanukovich was eventually elected in 2010 and Russia felt that many ties with Ukraine could be repaired. Prior to the election, Ukraine had not renewed the lease of Black Sea Naval base at Sevastopol, which meant that Russian troops would have to leave Crimea by 2017. However, Yanukovich signed a new lease allowing also troops to train in the Kerch peninsula. Many in Ukraine viewed the extension as unconstitutional because Ukraine’s constitution states that no permanent foreign troops would station in Ukraine after the Sevastopol treaty expired. Moreover, Yulia Tymoshenko, the main opposition figure of Yanukovich, was jailed on what many considered trumped-up charges, leading to further dissatisfaction with the government.

Another important factor in the tensions between Russian and Ukraine was Ukraine’s gradually closer ties with the European Union. For years, the EU promoted tight relations with Ukraine to encourage the country to take a more pro-European and less pro-Russian direction. In 2013, Russia warned Ukraine that if it went ahead with a long-planned agreement on free trade with the EU, it would face financial catastrophe and possibly the collapse of the state. Sergey Glazyev, adviser to President Vladimir Putin, suggested that, contrary to international law, if Ukraine signed the agreement, Russia would consider the bilateral treaty that delineates the countries’ borders to be void. Russia would no longer guarantee Ukraine’s status as a state and could possibly intervene if pro-Russian regions of the country appealed directly to Russia. In 2013, Viktor Yanukovich declined to sign the agreement with the European Union, choosing closer ties with Russia.

Political Turmoil and Annexation of Crimea

After Yanukovich’s decision, months of protests as part of what would be called the Euromaidan movement followed. In February 2014, protesters ousted the government of Viktor Yanukovich, who had been democratically elected in 2010. The protesters took control of government buildings in the capital city of Kiev, along with the city itself. Yanukovich fled Kiev for Kharkiv in the east of Ukraine, where he traditionally had more support. After this incident, the Ukrainian parliament voted to restore the 2004 Constitution of Ukraine and remove Yanukovich from power. However, politicians from the traditionally pro-Russian eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, including Crimea, declared continuing loyalty to Yanukovich.

Days after Yanukovich fled Kiev, armed men opposed to the Euromaidan movement began to take control of the Crimean Peninsula. Checkpoints were established by unmarked soldiers with green military-grade uniforms and equipment in the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Simferopol, and the independently-administered port-city of Sevastopol, home to a Russian naval base. After the occupation of the Crimean parliament by these unmarked troops, with evidence suggesting that they were Russian special forces, the Crimean leadership announced it would hold a referendum on secession from Ukraine. This heavily disputed referendum was followed by the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in mid-March. Ukraine and most of the international community refused to recognize the referendum or the annexation. On April 15, the Ukrainian parliament declared Crimea a territory temporarily occupied by Russia.

Since annexing Crimea, the Russian government increased its military presence in the region, with Russian president Vladimir Putin saying a Russian military task force would be established there. In 2014, Ukrainian Border Guard Service announced Russian troops began withdrawing from the areas of Kherson Oblast. They occupied parts of the Arabat Spit and the islands around the Syvash, which are geographically part of Crimea but administratively part of Kherson Oblast. One such village occupied by Russian troops was Strilkove, located on the Arabat Spit, which housed an important gas distribution center. Russian forces stated they took over the gas distribution center to prevent terrorist attacks. Consequently, they withdrew from southern Kherson but continued to occupy the gas distribution center outside Strilkove. In August 2016, Ukraine reported that Russia had increased its military presence along the demarcation line. Border crossings were then closed. Both sides accused each other of killings and provoking skirmishes but it remains unclear which accusations were true, with both Russia and Ukraine denying the opponent’s claims.

Unidentified gunmen on patrol at Simferopol International Airport

Unidentified gunmen on patrol at Simferopol International Airport: In September 2015 the United Nations Human Rights Office estimated that 8000 casualties had resulted from the conflict over the annexation of Crimea, noting that the violence has been “fueled by the presence and continuing influx of foreign fighters and sophisticated weapons and ammunition from the Russian Federation.”

In addition to the annexation of Crimea, an armed conflict in the Donbass region of Ukraine, known as the War in Donbass, began in March 2014. Protests by pro-Russian and anti-government groups took place in the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of Ukraine, together commonly called the Donbass, in the aftermath of the Euromaidan movement. These demonstrations, which followed the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation and which were part of a wider group of concurrent pro-Russian protests across southern and eastern Ukraine, escalated into an armed conflict between the separatist forces of the self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, with the support of Russian military forces and the Ukrainian government. Since the start of the conflict, there have been 11 ceasefires, each intended to be indefinite. As of March 2017, the fighting continues.

International Response

There have been a range of international reactions to the Russian annexation of Crimea. The UN General Assembly passed a non-binding resolution 100 in favor, 11 against, and 58 abstentions in the 193-nation assembly that declared Crimea’s Moscow-backed referendum invalid. Many countries implemented economic sanctions against Russia, Russian individuals, or companies, to which Russia responded in kind.The United States government imposed sanctions against persons they deem to have violated or assisted in the violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty. The European Union suspended talks with Russia on economic and visa-related matters and eventually added more stringent sanctions against Russia, including asset freezes. Japan announced sanctions, which include suspension of talks relating to military, space, investment, and visa requirements. NATO condemned Russia’s military escalation in Crimea and stated that it was breach of international law, while the Council of Europe expressed its full support for the territorial integrity and national unity of Ukraine. China announced that it respected “the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.” A spokesman restated China’s belief of non-interference in the internal affairs of other nations and urged dialogue.

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