Georgia wins August War case in Hague, proves Europe sees truth about August War 2008

By Malkhaz Matsaberidze

Friday, December 23, 2022

The investigation phase of the August 2008 war case has ended at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. The Georgian side was not accused of war crimes and the responsibility lies entirely with Moscow and the Ossetian separatists acting on its instructions.

After the war started by Putin in Ukraine in 2022, the West clearly saw the true face of today's Russia and adequately understood what Moscow did against Georgia years ago. The Georgian side carried out self-defense and acted in compliance with all the rules of war. The decision of the Hague Court is a great victory for Georgia not only because the Russian version of the August 2008 war failed, but also because the representatives of the current government of Georgia can no longer talk about the war crimes committed by the "previous government" during this war.

After the 5-day war of August 2008, the Medvedev-Putin regime not only achieved military success against Georgia, but also gaines a propaganda victory. Some people in the West were eager to believe what Russian propaganda claimed. As if the then president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, started hostilities, the Ossetian population in the Tskhinvali region was threatened, and therefore Moscow intervened in the 'conflict'.

If they did not believe this, then they would have to strongly condemn the Russian aggression against Georgia. This is how the extensive conclusion of Mrs. Taliavini's commission, sent by the European Union, appeared, which had a 'balanced' character as a whole, and Russian propaganda considered it a proof of its correctness.

Saakashvili's government was actively attacked in connection with the August war by the opposition at that time, which gradually gathered around Ivanishvili. This is how Georgian Dream was born, whose first members, during Saakashvili's time in the opposition and after he came to power, considered it a 'proven fact' that 'Saakashvili started the war', that 'Tskhinvali was bombed in sleep', 'military crimes' were committed and sooner or later the perpetrators will be brought to justice. Commander-in-Chief Saakashvili and other Georgian military personnel.

If it was not done in Georgia, the international court would do it in the Hague. Such statements were repeatedly voiced by Bidzina Ivanishvili, Salome Zurabishvili, Tea Tsulukiani and others. Their position was fully consistent with the Russian propaganda messages regarding the August war.

There were various assumptions in Georgia regarding why such statements were made by the leaders of the Georgian Dream. According to one version, we were dealing with party hatred.

The leaders of the Georgian Dream hated Mikheil Saakashvili and his team so much that they were ready to support Russian propaganda and did not care about how they were harming the interests of Georgia with their statements. The second version was simpler and more prosaic, and the authors of such statements were considered Putin's agents. The Hague Court did not find a single Georgian guilty for a war crime. This put an end to the discussion of 14 years about the August war and who was to blame for the war crimes. The Hague Court convicted Russian General Vyacheslav Borisov (deputy commander of the Russian Air Force during the August 2008 war), whom the Russian side declares dead, and three high-ranking officials of the Tskhinvali separatist regime.

Georgia suspects that Borisov was simply hidden in Russia and there are no real facts confirming his death. The decision of the Hague Court, in principle, put those who spoke about the crime of the 'Georgian side' in an awkward position. Television channels critical of the government immediately searched their archives for their old announcements. However, no new explanations were made by the authors of such statements.

Instead, the imprisoned third president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, responded to the decision of the International Criminal Court in The Hague. "I am extremely proud of our Georgian army, which showed the highest class not only in battle, but also played in such a way that no one's rights were violated, which is very difficult during the war," said Saakashvili.

The health condition of Saakashvili, who is in prison, has been causing serious concern for a long time, and the Georgian authorities are being urged to make a decision to transfer him abroad for treatment. However, these appeals, which were recently voiced by Ukrainian President Zelensky, remain unanswered.