Implications of the August 2008 Russian-Georgian Conflict: A New Era in The Caucasus
Implications of the August 2008 Russian-Georgian Conflict: A New Era in The Caucasus

Summary/Abstract: After Soviet Union’s collapse and the end of the Cold War, regional conflicts have emerged in the former Soviet territories. However, these conflicts’ impact on relations among big powers has been minimal. This situation started to change in particular with the Kosovo crisis. Russia’s relations with the West began, in fact, to deteriorate with the independence of Kosovo. Shortly, the Russian-Georgian conflict in August 2008 created a big rift in Russia’s relations with the West. The purpose of this commentary is to focus on the consequences of the conflict, and it also tries to spell out its causes. It is argued that one significant consequence of the Russian-Georgian conflict is Russia’s damaging image in the eyes of the West. As a consequence, Europe and the US focused on the energy projects which by-pass Russia. After the Russian-Georgian conflict new realities have surfaced in the Caucasus, requiring the implementation of the new strategic initiatives. Black Sea and the Caucasus region’s strategic importance also increased in terms of West’s security. Given these latest developments, “Back to the Cold War” might become the right expression to describe the political atmosphere of the entire region.

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