Georgia committed to democratization despite its war with Russia

Ten years ago this week, while the world was fixated on the Olympic Games in Beijing, a Russian invasion force passed through the Roki Tunnel on the Russian-Georgian border.

At the time, nobody knew how far Russia was willing to go or how long the war would last. The situation was chaotic. Tbilisi International Airport was bombed by Russia. An advanced cyber-attack was carried out against Georgian government websites. Most of Europe was on vacation.

To make matters worse, Georgia had almost 2,000 of its best troops fighting in Iraq. The US scrambled to airlift them back in a day — these troops literally going from one fight to another, still wearing their desert uniforms.

Russian troops eventually got within kilometers of the capital city of Tbilisi, destroying everything in their path.

Hostilities were finally brought to an end after a Six-Point Cease-fire Agreement was brokered by then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy. A decade later, Russia is still not in full compliance of the deal. Thousands of Russian troops still occupy the regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which together equal 20 percent of Georgia’s internationally recognized territory.

Russia also recognizes the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, but attempts by Moscow to drum up international support for them have failed miserably. So far, only Nicaragua, Venezuela, Nauru and recently Syria have joined Moscow in recognizing their independence.

The impact of the war is still felt today and has geopolitical implications for three reasons.

Thousands of Russian troops still occupy the regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which together equal 20 percent of Georgia’s internationally recognized territory

Luke Coffey

First, Russia uses its military presence as a de facto veto on Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations. Moscow knows that, as long as it invades and then partially occupies a country, the prospects of that nation joining NATO or the European Union are slim. They have replicated this model in Ukraine.

Secondly, Moscow cannot be trusted. Ten years on, Russia still does not allow humanitarian aid to enter the occupied regions and Russian troops have not returned to their pre-war locations — two important points of the cease-fire agreement that ended the fighting. The international community faces a similar problem with Russia in both Ukraine and Syria. In both places, Russia has agreed some sort of cease-fire but has not lived up to its obligations. Just look at the situation in southern Syria for the latest example.

Thirdly, Russia likes keeping the situation unstable and exerts influence in the region through these so-called frozen conflicts. Located in the South Caucasus, Georgia sits at a crucial geographical and cultural crossroads and has proven to be strategically important for military and economic reasons for centuries. Russia knows this and wants influence in the region.

To keep the situation unstable, Moscow has implemented a policy of “borderization” in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. This includes creating a line of occupation by constructing illegal fencing, so called “state border” signs, and earthen barriers to separate communities and further divide the Georgian people. In extreme cases, Russia has taken even more territory by moving fences a few meters at a time. This is Russia’s “creeping annexation” of Georgia, which continues a decade after the war.

Perhaps the most egregious example of this creeping annexation was in July 2015, when Russia annexed a 1.6 kilometer section of the Baku-Supsa oil pipeline and extended its line of occupation to within 400 meters of the main east-west highway in the South Caucasus. Like in August 2008, Russia knew the world would be distracted. This land grab occurred in the same week as the referendum in Greece about the terms of its economic bailout and the announcement by the P5+1 about the Iran nuclear deal.

Over the years, I have visited the line of occupation many times. This line divides free Georgia from occupied Georgia. It divides families, farms and communities. I have seen the Russian flag flying on territory that is internationally recognized as being part of Georgia.

Since regaining independence in 1991 following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Georgia has been on a journey to democracy and Russia’s invasion and occupation has not slowed it down. Over the years, successive Georgian governments have pursued an agenda of liberalizing the economy, cutting bureaucracy, fighting corruption, and embracing democracy.

Trying to reform your governance, economy, military and legal system while 20 percent of your territory is under foreign occupation is no easy task. Nevertheless, Georgia is doing it and doing it well.

Today, Georgia represents the idea in Europe that each country has the sovereign ability to determine its own path and to decide with whom it has relations and how and by whom it is governed.

The case of Georgia shows why territorial integrity must be respected and why no outside actor (in this case, Russia) should have a veto on membership or closer relations with organizations like the European Union or NATO.

Much ink has been spilled over apportioning blame for the conflict. Some argue that the pugnacious approach taken by then-Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili sparked the Russian aggression. Others point out that such a large invasion force could not have been sent through the Roki Tunnel as quickly as it was without any prior preparation on the side of Moscow.

At the end of the day, the blame for which side started the fighting in August 2008 does not matter. It was Russia that invaded Georgia, not the other way around. Russia was the aggressor, and Georgia was the victim. Ten years on, the world should not forget this.