Summary

With the recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia by the Russian Federation and Nicaragua, a new phase in the conflict between these republics and Georgia started. This chapter aims to analyze what chances and consequences the recognition brings seen from an international legal perspective. Since the negotiation process between the parties plays an important role in creating solutions for still pending conflicts, the mediation eff orts by the UN are analyzed to see why it is so difficult to find common ground regarding the international legal status of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Events of August 2008

During the night of 7 August, 2008 Georgian forces attacked Russian peacekeepers in the South Ossetian capital Tchinval. A Russian military reaction was swift. Under the pretext of protecting its citizens in South Ossetia, many of which held Russian passports, Russian forces entered South Ossetia. The mandate of the Russian peacekeepers was upgraded to peace enforcing, according to Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lavrov. The events in South Ossetia also resulted in combined Russian- Abkhazian military activity in and along the border with Georgia at the Kodori Gorge. The Abkhazians feared Georgian military activity in and along the border of their territory. The military operation, performed by the Pskov regiment from South Russia, was successful. Georgian troops were removed from South Ossetian territory.

Recognition by Russia

As a result of the fighting, Russia took political steps. Meetings between the Russian President Medvedev and his Abkhazian and South Ossetian counterparts Bagapsh and Kokoity took place. On 26 August, 2008 this resulted in the formal recognition by Russia of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states. Medvedev followed the rationale of Western European states in the case of Kosovo, many of which formally recognized Kosovo as an independence state after February 2008. Recognition was granted notwithstanding Serbia's claim to territorial integrity. Resolution 1244 of the UN Security Council remained valid, respecting Serbia's territorial integrity. This means that Kosovo was recognized while at the same time there was a legally binding document in force demanding (implicitly) not to recognize.