Buy the article on CAIRN websiteAbstract

This article focuses on the deterioration of relations between Georgia and Russia over the secessionist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Georgia’s separatist conflicts are far more than domestic territorial disputes: they have both regional and international implications, and represent one of the principal obstacles to the development of Georgian-Russian relations. As military skirmishes have threatened to escalate, jeopardizing stability in the volatile Caucasus region, President Mikheil Saakashvili’s desire to resolve these protracted conflicts has become symbolic of his vigorous approach to tackling Georgia’s more intractable problems.Tracey C. German is Lecturer at Defence Studies Department of King's College London. Her current research are focused on security issues in the Caucasus region, particularly problems within Georgia, as well as the impact of the ongoing Chechen conflict on relations between Russia and the EU.