Occupation facts & sources

Russia occupies about 20% of Georgia's internationally recognized territory: Abkhazia and Samachablo (the Tskhinvali region, called "South Ossetia" by Russia). These are the facts, dated and sourced.

Abkhazia

Main city: Sokhumi

In Soviet times Abkhazia was an autonomous republic within Georgia, and ethnic Georgians made up almost half of its population. In the 1992–1993 war, Abkhaz separatists, backed by Russian forces and North Caucasian fighters, drove out Georgian government forces. Over 200,000 ethnic Georgians were forced to flee, and the OSCE condemned it as ethnic cleansing.

Occupied since: 2008

This territory is part of Georgia. It has been outside Georgian government control since 1993 and under Russian military occupation since the August 2008 war. In 2021 the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Russia exercises effective control over it.

Key dates

1989Soviet census: ethnic Georgians are the largest group in Abkhazia, about 46% of the population.
1992–1993War. Abkhaz separatists, with support from Russian forces and North Caucasian fighters, defeat Georgian government forces. Sokhumi falls in September 1993, and most ethnic Georgians are expelled.
1994Moscow ceasefire agreement; Russian troops deploy as CIS 'peacekeepers'.
1994–1999OSCE summits in Budapest, Lisbon and Istanbul condemn the ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia.
2008Russia invades Georgia in August. Russian and Abkhaz forces seize Upper Abkhazia (the Kodori Gorge), the last part still under Georgian control. On 26 August Russia recognizes Abkhazia's 'independence'.
2008October: Georgia's Law on Occupied Territories declares Abkhazia a territory occupied by Russia.
2021The European Court of Human Rights rules that Russia has exercised effective control over Abkhazia since the 2008 ceasefire.
TodayRussian military bases remain. Georgians displaced in the 1990s still cannot return home.

Visitor note

Planning to visit? Under Georgian law, foreigners may enter Abkhazia only from the Georgian side, via the Enguri bridge near Zugdidi.

Sources

Samachablo

Also known as: Also referred to as the Tskhinvali region; called "South Ossetia" by Russia and the occupation regime.

Main city: Tskhinvali

Samachablo is the historical Georgian name for this land, once the domain of the Machabeli noble family. In 1922 the Soviets made it the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within Georgia. In 1990 local separatists declared a separate republic; Georgia's parliament abolished the autonomy in response, and war broke out.

Occupied since: 2008

This territory is part of Georgia. Much of it has been outside Georgian government control since the early 1990s, and all of it has been under Russian military occupation since the August 2008 war. Since 2011, Russian forces have been turning the occupation line into a fenced 'border', in places pushing it deeper into Georgian-controlled land.

Key dates

1922The Soviets create the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within Georgia.
1990Separatists declare a separate republic; in December, Georgia's Supreme Council abolishes the autonomy.
1991–1992War. The June 1992 Sochi agreement ends the fighting and brings in a joint peacekeeping force of Russian, Georgian and North Ossetian troops.
2008August: after months of escalating provocations, fighting breaks out around Tskhinvali. Russian forces invade Georgia, pushing beyond the region into undisputed Georgian territory, including Gori. Ethnic Georgian villages in the region are burned and looted. Russia also seizes the Akhalgori district, previously under Georgian control.
200826 August: Russia recognizes 'South Ossetia' as independent. In October, Georgia's Law on Occupied Territories declares it occupied by Russia.
2011–today'Borderization': Russian forces install fences, barbed wire and ditches along the occupation line, splitting villages and cutting people off from their fields and families.
2021The European Court of Human Rights rules that Russia has exercised effective control since the 2008 ceasefire, and that killing, torture, and the torching and looting of Georgian villages were an administrative practice for which Russia is responsible.

Visitor note

Planning to visit? Under Georgian law, foreigners may enter only from the Georgian side, but the occupation regime does not let foreigners in that way.