MOSCOW, August 8. /TASS/. Washington is once again fighting a proxy war against Russia the way it did in August 2008, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev wrote on Telegram.
"Exactly 15 years ago, Russia gave a resolute response to a cowardly attack [by Georgia] on Tskhinval, [South Ossetia,] hitting back hard against the aggressor," he pointed out. "The US and its vassals clearly lacked experience back then. Today, they are once again fighting an unlawful proxy war, trying to wipe Russia off the face of the earth," Medvedev added.
When speaking about Georgia’s 2008 attack on South Ossetia, Medvedev emphasized that then-Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili had been backed by the collective West, "which had already made up its mind to destabilize the situation in direct proximity to the Russian border."
"It took our armed forces five days to punish [Georgia’s] brazen nationalists in a prompt, tough manner. They protected our people living in Abkhazia and South Ossetia from the enemy. They provided the new countries with an opportunity to develop with the backing of Russia," he stressed.
On August 8, 2008, Georgia mounted an overnight armed attack against South Ossetia. Russia intervened to protect civilians, many of whom had obtained Russian citizenship, and its peacekeeping contingent, which had been stationed in the region since 1992. In a five-day armed conflict, more than one thousand people, including 72 Russian peacekeepers, lost their lives. On August 26, 2008, Russia recognized the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, another former autonomous region of Georgia.