“Terrible tragedy”: Georgia recalls war with Russia 15 years ago

Fifteen years after the war with Russia, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili in the South Caucasus republic of Georgia commemorated the victims and spoke out in favor of a peaceful solution to the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. “It was a terrible tragedy,” Garibashvili said on Tuesday, marking the 15th anniversary of the beginning of the South Caucasus War, which lasted from August 8-12, 2008. 400 Georgians were killed and more than 2,000 injured.

Garibashvili blamed then-president Mikhail Saakashvili, who had since been imprisoned, for starting the war. At that time he had followed his own interests and had not tried to prevent the war. The EU and the US demanded that Russia withdraw its troops from the areas.

Russian troops in South Ossetia and Abkhazia

At that time, Georgia lost control of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Russia stationed troops there and, despite international protests, recognized the regions as independent states. Garibaschvili complained that the Black Sea republic is still suffering from the consequences of losing 20 percent of its national territory. “This war brought us an illegal occupation,” he said, referring to Russia’s troops there. “We have said again and again that this war could have been prevented.”

At the time, President Saakashvili was trying to gain control of the breakaway region of South Ossetia. Russia invaded there under then-President Dmitry Medvedev. As commander-in-chief, Saakashvili showed “great irresponsibility,” Garibaschvili said. There was no risk assessment. “It was a leadership that was directed against national interests and didn’t care about uniting the territories of Georgia and protecting the people, it was a power apparatus that only cared about its own interests.”

Medvedev draws parallels to the Ukraine war

Ex-Kremlin boss Medvedev, who is now deputy head of the Russian Security Council, announced on Telegram on the anniversary that Russia had beaten back the “aggressor’s” attack on the South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali within five days. Saakashvili knew that the “collective West” was behind him, which was already trying to destabilize the situation on Russia’s borders. As in 2008, Russia will win its war against Ukraine, which has been going on for more than 17 months, said Medvedev.

“The experience of that time was probably not enough for the USA and its vassals,” said Medvedev. Although Russia started the war against Ukraine itself, Moscow has repeatedly accused the West of waging a proxy war against Russia on the territory of the neighboring country. “They are trying again today to wage a criminal war with foreign hands with the intention of wiping Russia off the face of the earth. The whole NATO system is practically openly fighting against us.” However, Russia has enough power to fulfill all war goals in Ukraine, said Medvedev.

The day before, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had again shown his solidarity with Georgia in view of the country’s struggle to restore its territorial integrity. Selenskyj once again described Russia as an aggressor who must be punished. Only if the Georgian and Ukrainian territories are liberated from Russian occupation can there be peace and stability in Europe, he stressed.