Georgia-Russia Conflict

History

The current armed conflict has its roots in a dispute between Georgia and Ossetia that goes back almost a hundered years ago.

The serious clashes began when the half-demented first president of post-Soviet Georgia, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, espoused an extreme chauvinist form of nationalism which declared all citizens who were not ethnic Georgians to be "guests" on the republic's territory. Gamsakhurdia abolished the autonomy and even the very name of South Ossetia.

The major conflict started in a series of uprisings in South Ossetia. The uprisings were against the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. Newspapers of the time stated the Georgian government was conducting "national butchery of the Ossetians."Violent conflict broke out towards the end of 1991. Many South Ossetian villages were attacked and burned. As a result of the violence, approximately 1,000 people died and about 100,000 ethnic Ossetians fled the territory and moved mostly to North Ossetia, a republic within the Russian Federation.
After hundreds were killed, Georgia's Ossetians took what appeared the only option open to them: to separate. They rapidly found Russian protection in the guise of "peacekeepers".
In 1992 (ceasefire), Georgia was forced to accept a ceasefire to avoid a large scale confrontation with Russia.

In June 2004, tensions began to rise again as the Georgian authorities strengthened their efforts against smuggling, hostage takings etc, clearly breaking the terms of the 1992 ceasefire.
In 2008 tensions in the region continued and outbreaks of violence became increasingly frequent in the border area of Georgia and Russia.

Georgia maintained that it was an internal affair as the breakaway republic (Ossetia) had never been recognized internationally thus could be resolved without outside interference. However, early on August 8 Georgia launched a massive military offensive to take control of the republic.

Earlier, Russian ambassador Yuri Popov already warned that Russia would intervene if conflict erupted. Thus, after Georgian rockets were fired into South Ossetia and caused a humanitarian crisis which Russian government sources claimed amounted to genocide, Russia attacked Georgia.They claimed to have only responded in defense of South Ossetians against what they called "a genocide by Georgian forces.”

Opinion

The attack by Georgia against Ossetia is considered a qualified crime of genocide. Under the Roman Statute, genocide are acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part , a national, ethical, racial or religious group- a crime punishable before the International Criminal Court (ICC). In the statute, it provides that a state party or the UN Security Council may refer to the Prosecutor a situation of a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court and the ICC prosecutor may also initiate an investigation in respect to such crime.

Thus, in international law , there are certain procedures set forth in the manner of dealing and preventing crimes of concern to the international community. As members of the family of nations, a country should not take the law into its own hand.

Georgia in initiating the attack against Ossetia breached its 1992 ceasefire obligation which a manner inconsistent to the principle of the United Nation pacta sunt servanda (obligation should be performed in good faith).

Georgia’s claim that it is an internal affair in accordance with the UN principle of domestic jurisdiction should be coupled with peaceful means of settling the dispute and not resorting to armed attack. If this is Georgia’s means of settling their conflict to its de facto government Ossetia, then such if aggravates can be a breach of international peace and security which can allow the United Nation to intervene.

Russia on the other hand, acted too soon and left the whole world to speculate on what could truly be their intention. Is it really a defensive response in aid of Ossetia or any deeper motives ? – this is unclear.

Russia initially requested the UN Security Council a consultation on how to end the hostilities in Ossetia, but was unable to come up with a decision. Despite this, Russia pushed with what they claimed to be only an attack in defense of South Ossetians against "a genocide by Georgian forces.”

Art. 51 of the UN Charter recognizes the right to individual or collective self-defense until UN Security Council has taken necessary measures.But it limits the use of armed attack to justify the exercise of the rigt to self-defense. Forcible measures may be taken by a state only in the face of “a necessity of self-defense instant, overwhelming and leaving no choice of means and no moment for deliberation.”

Inconsistent to the purposes of UN, Russia’s act cannot be justified as an act of self-defense. Repelling a possible threat to their territory specifically their border area adjacent to Georgia are mere apprehensions. Art. 51 of the UN Charter further provides that mere apprehension does not warrant use of force.

If Russia’s intention is to respond and extend aid to Ossetians or protect their territory or peace, then it could have resorted to regional arrangements. Under the UN Charter every member shall make every effort to achieve pacific settlements of local disputes through such regional arrangements. It shall only be the UN Security Council who shall determine the existence of any threat or breach to peace, or acts of aggression and shall make recommendations and decide what measures to be taken in maintaining international peace and security.

Moreover, Russia’s counter attack to Georgia cannot be justified under the Roman Statute. ICC through the Roman Statute provides procedures on how to exercise criminal jurisdiction on a crime of genocide against those responsible internationally. It also emphasized that the Statute shall not be taken as authorizing any State Party to intervene in an armed conflict or in the internal affairs of any State-which Russia clearly violated.

Laslty, Russia’s intervention is not valid as intervention is only justified when it is an act of self-defense or when decreed by the Security Council as a preventive or enforcement action or when agreed upon in a treaty.

Clearly, Russia had their own thoughtless acts and so as Georgia. In the end, the greater destruction could have been avoided if these principles of the United Nation and International Laws in general are gravely followed – But sad to note, it seems they remained to be just principles which are yet to be implemented and effected.