Renewed conflicts, frozen status quo : Russian-Georgian relations after the war

Tensions accumulated in Russian-Georgian relationship ended up with an armed conflict in August 2008. This armed confrontation seems to minimize Tbilisi's possibilities to restitute Georgian territorial integrity. Numerous arguments exist that main causes of the conflict overcome Russian-Georgian bilateral relations, and the main reason of the confrontation is that Georgia has become an arena of competition between Russia and the United States. Abkhazia and South Ossetia are merely elements in the strategy of balancing that Kremlin has adopted to address American pressure in the region. By offering a definitive support to separatist republics, Moscow is preserving the status quo and securing Russian instrumental interests.