Dateline: BUCHAREST

Here is the portal [hold on to your seats] of The State Committee on Information and Press of the Republic of South Ossetia. Official news channel of the de facto authorities.

Notice the fact that the town’s name is written Tskhinval, not Tskhinvali. The -i suffix is considered as a Georgian alteration of the original name. As a result, de facto authorities dropped the letter from the names. Sukhumi became Sukhum, etc. Converesely, when I was in Georgia, some Georgians would call me Alexi. Which now makes me feel like a separatist, for dropping the -i ending in my name.

A convoy of around 20 Russian tanks and trucks filled with troops and materiel are making to South Ossetia, through the Roki tunnel. The situation is escalating rapidly, following bellicose statements by Russian officials.

Putin has been quoted as saying that Russian ‘volunteers’, deeply troubled by the situation in South Ossetia, are clamoring to be let into the region, in order to defend it from Tbilisi.

That was two hours ago. Apparently the ‘volunteers’ are extremely well organized and able to respond within hours. Impressive, right?

In the meantime, the opening ceremony of the Olympics is under way. The olympics are a symbol for peace. During ancient times, in Greece, all hostilities would cease throughout the duration of the Olympic Games. But Russia does not believe in the Olympics. Or, in tears, for  that matter.

Via Stratfor:

Updates will be made as more information becomes available. All times are local Georgian time.

Aug. 7, 10:30 p.m.: South Ossetia breaks a cease-fire agreement with Georgia, according to the secretary of the Georgian National Security Council, Kakha Lomaia. Lomaia said the “separatists opened fire at the two Georgian villages of Prisi and Tamarasheni.”
Approximately 11:55 p.m.: An aide to the commander of Russia’s peacekeeping forces tells Interfax in an interview that South Ossetia’s capital city, Tskhinvali, is being shelled from GRAD-type multiple rocket launchers.
Aug. 8, midnight: A defense ministry official from Georgia says that Georgia has decided to “restore constitutional order to the entire region” of South Ossetia. Continue Reading »

This morning I woke up to news of war in Ossetia. Conflict had been brewing there for a while now - in May, a war involving Russia and Georgia seemed all but inevitable. Now, shots are being fired, apparently Georgian troops are deployed inside Ossetia and Russia is already actively involved. What a way to mark the opening of the Olympics!

The facts. During the recent days, Georgia has been trying to push a peace solution to the South Ossetian conflict, but met with Tskhinvali’s defiance. Talks, scheduled for yesterday, never happened. Instead, last night conflict erupted. Georgians allege that their military responded to attacks on Georgian villages by Ossetian fighters. Regardless of whether in response to a provocation or an intentional display of force, Georgian troops entered Ossetia last night, launching a large-scale military offensive and engaging in serious fighting, leaving 15 dead, including, according to several reports, civilians, and leaving 3 Russians wounded. Other reports [cited by Reuters] state that several Russian peacekeepers have now been killed by Georgian artillery.

Russia’s response. Russia vowed to defend its citizens and, this morning, launched airborne attacks on several targets in Georgia, including [presumably a military base in] Gori. Of course, Moscow accuses Georgia of breaking the ceasefire and engaging in aggression. Also, in a recent statement, the Speaker of the Russian Parliament has reaffirmed Moscow’s intention of defending its citizens in South Ossetia. Also, from Beijing, Russian PM Putin calls Georgia’s acts ‘an aggression’ and threatens that they will not be left unchecked.

Georgia’s statements. Saakashvili has called for a general mobilization of Georgian population. In a televized address this morning, he said that part of S. Ossetia ‘has been freed’, with other official reports saying that Tbilisi is now in control over 8 towns in South Ossetia.

International reactions. So far, I haven’t heard of any official reactions to this on the international scene. Most leaders are in Beijing for the Olympics, where there has been a brief meeting between Putin and Bush. The UN Security Council has failed to reach a common statement on the conflict. Just in: President Bush is now calling for an immediate end to the conflict.

Possible future developments. The conflict looks likely to escalate, with both Georgia and Russia officially committed to it. Moscow’s hawkish stance looks especially worrying. Other reports talk of hundreds of fighters from Abkhazia hurrying to support Ossetian rebels.

News coverage. Read this story on BBC for a good round-up of the events. Also, CNN offers a good overview of the situation, and here information is better organized for people who have little background on the area. For the Russian point of view, watch this Russia Today report. Finally, a news update on Bloomberg talks of Russian attacks on Georgia. Check out civil.ge for constant updates on the situation.

The events in Ossetia are unfolding at high speed, so it is very hard to catch up on all the developments. Feel free to leave any comment if I have missed anything. I will try to keep you updated as things happen on the ground, as well as give you my own take on this.

I came across this blog entry [Romanian only] about South Ossetia. It tells the author’s [who happens to be an expert on frozen conflicts] impressions during a visit to Tskhinvali, Kurta, and Georgian villages. It ends with a dinner with Misha Saakashvili. Well worth the read!