Opinion: ‘Agreement between so-called South Ossetia and Russia amounts to de facto annexation of region’
Opinion on the Russia–Tskhinvali agreement
Tamta Mikeladze, director of the Social Justice Center, responded to the agreement signed on 9 May 2026 between the de facto authorities of South Ossetia and Russia.
In her view, the document effectively amounts to the almost complete annexation of the region.
On 9 May, Vladimir Putin and Alan Gagloev met at the Kremlin and signed an agreement that, officially, aims to “deepen allied cooperation” between Russia and the so-called South Ossetia. However, the agreement has triggered renewed debate in the region over whether Moscow is moving closer to the de facto annexation of South Ossetia.
Tamta Mikeladze said: “The agreement signed on 9 May 2026 between the de facto government of South Ossetia and Russia amounts to the practical annexation of the region.
“Look at the key and deeply alarming provisions of the so-called agreement:
‘Citizens of one side may hold state and municipal positions, as well as civil service posts, in the state and municipal bodies of the other side.’
“This means Russian citizens could be directly appointed to positions within the de facto government of South Ossetia.
‘The parties equally recognise and protect all forms of property recognised in their territories and ensure equal rights for citizens to acquire, own, use and dispose of property.’
“This means Russian citizens could acquire and control property and land in the region under the same legal framework as local residents.
‘The parties will take further steps towards creating a single economic space aimed at improving citizens’ welfare and living standards. To achieve this, they will harmonise legislation regulating economic activity, including civil and tax law, on the basis of transparency and fairness.’
“This would lead to the region’s full economic absorption by Russia.
‘The parties will continue taking steps towards the gradual integration of energy systems (including gas pipelines), transport systems, as well as communications and telecommunications. The rules governing shared elements of this infrastructure will be determined by separate international agreements.’
“This would mean Russia taking full control over the region’s transport, energy and telecommunications systems.
“It is no coincidence that Alan Gagloev used these words during his meeting with Vladimir Putin: the document would become a step towards the ‘reunification of the Ossetian people’.
“Local media in Tskhinvali had previously reported that a document concerning the creation of a union state with Russia was likely to be signed on 9 May.
“In Tskhinvali — unlike in Abkhazia — there is virtually no opposition to this annexation policy. Local residents therefore welcomed it enthusiastically.”
“This is the so-called peace policy of the ruling Georgian Dream.
“They have given everything away to Russia, deprived us of the chance to join the European Union and attack, on a daily basis, the countries that recognise and defend our territorial integrity. Yet with this submissive policy towards Russia, they have achieved nothing.
“In reality, they have not taken a single step forward in the breakaway regions. Georgians in Gali remain without rights, and even a necessary programme to protect the Georgian language has never been properly implemented. No detainees have been released from the occupied territories in a timely manner, and so on.
[The website of the minister for reconciliation reports no progress beyond the exchange of bodies of those killed during the war. It is truly a dead ministry pursuing a dead policy.]
“Now we are witnessing a genuinely catastrophic push towards annexation in Tskhinvali. Beyond this, almost nothing remains except the region’s direct and legal incorporation into Russia.
“Will Georgian diplomacy and foreign policy move beyond the remarks made by Maka Botchorishvili in Chisinau?”
Opinion on the Russia–Tskhinvali agreement
