US Embassy: 10 Years from War Russia still occupies Georgian territory
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Thursday, August 2
The US Embassy to Georgia says in its most recent statement, released a week before the 10th anniversary of the Russia-Georgia 2008 war that Russia still occupies Georgian territory.
“Next week marks ten years since Russia’s armed forces poured across the international border with Georgia, attempting to change the borders by force.
“Several thousand Russian forces moved into the city of Gori and other areas far from the conflict zone, such as Georgia’s main port of Poti, far from the main area fighting,” the US Embassy stated.
The embassy says that Russia also seized the last Georgian-held portion of Abkhazia, where there had been no fighting.
“Russia’s assault on Georgia had begun as its army crossed an internationally recognized boundary in an attempt to change by force the borders of another country.
“We again call on Russia to withdraw its forces to pre-war positions, as it agreed in 2008,” the embassy statement reads.
High ranking guests from Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Ukraine will visit Georgia on August 6-7 to mark the upcoming 10th anniversary of the Russia-Georgia 2008 war.
The Russia-Georgia war lasted five days and following this armed conflict 228 Georgian civilians, 170 soldiers and 14 police officers had lost their lives.
The war displaced 192,000 people in Georgia. Many were able to return to their homes after the war, but as of May 2014, more than 20,200 people remain displaced.
Since the war, only Russia, Nicaragua, Nauru, Venezuela and Syria have recognized the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali as independent nations.
The rest of the international community calls upon Russia to leave the historic Georgian land.
Russia says that it “protects” Abkhazians and Ossetians from the government of Georgia.
