Georgia and the Russian invasions/annexations/Lebensraum (2008 & 2015)

[McG]

More on Russia's latest Georgian annexations here:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-33675488

Odd that this is not getting more press coverage.

 

[Edward Campbell]

I think the Caucasus may be the one of the few regions that is more geo-politically confusing to the Western mind than is that Balkans ... and we remember the rule of thumb about the Balkans, don't we?

         

I don't think much has changed in the past 140 years.

 

[The Bread Guy]

Bumped with the latest from the 2008 "adventure" ...

International Criminal Court judges ordered an investigation of alleged crimes committed during the 2008 Georgian-Russian over the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia - the court's first investigation outside Africa.

The five-day war saw Russia strengthen its grip over largely pro-Russian South Ossetia, which had effectively been beyond Tbilisi's control since 1990. Russian troops pushed through South Ossetia deep into Georgia before withdrawing.

In a statement on Wednesday, judges said there was reason to believe crimes against humanity, including murder and the driving of Georgians from their homes, had been committed during the conflict, as well as war crimes including attacks on peacekeepers by Russian-backed South Ossetian and by Georgian forces.

The ICC, which has handed down just two convictions, of little-known Congolese warlords, has been criticised for bringing investigations only in Africa since being set up 13 years ago.

Last October, ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda asked to open an investigation after finding that up to 113 ethnic Georgian civilans had been killed and 18,500 driven from their homes as part of a "forcible displacement campaign" run by the authorities in mainly Russian-speaking South Ossetia.

Investigators will investigate allegations of crimes committed betweeen July 1 and October 10, 2008, covering periods either side of the five-day August war.

Opposing Georgian and South Ossetian forces appeared to have killed 12 peacekeepers, both Russian and Georgian, while Georgian forces had attacked a medical facility, Bensouda said ...

 

[The Bread Guy]

Welcome, Ossetian brothers & sisters!

South Ossetian President Leonid Tibilov has recently announced an intention to conduct a referendum in the country to join the Russian Federation. According to Tibilov, reunification with Russia has been a longstanding dream of the South Osetian people. Moscow has not been showing friendly attitude to such statements on post-Soviet space lately, but in this case, Russia made an exception.

"Political reality prompts us to make our historical choice. We must reunite with brotherly Russia to ensure security and prosperity for our republic and our people for centuries to come," Tibilov said ...

Here's a map in case you've forgotten where the latest protectorate's going ...

 

[RangerRay]

Old thread but I saw this video on the current protests in Georgia against the Russophilic government there.

Cemil Kerimoglu on Substack

You know, this Georgian girl is worth more than all the Joe Rogans, Tucker Carlsons, Sahra Wagenknechts and all the rest of their odious ilk, all the Russia-sympathizers, all the despicable peaceniks and "nuclear war" alarmists in our midst combined.

substack.com