Abkhazia, South Ossetia, & Russia’s Troubling Policy Towards Post-Soviet States

Russia projects its power by supporting regional separatist groups and independence movements in post-Soviet states. Such policies come at great humanitarian cost, often resulting in long-term harm.

by Caitlin McCulloch

In 2008, the Republic of Georgia, a small country on the southeastern border of Russia, rocketed into Western headlines when a five-day war between the two countries broke out in Georgia’s separatist regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia. However, before too long, Western audiences had turned their attention away from the region. In la…