TSKHINVALI, August 25. /TASS/. The events that took place in South Ossetia 15 years ago are very similar to what is now happening in Ukraine, as both instances involve Russia fighting nationalists and saving civilians from genocide, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots Artyom Turov said.
"The events that took place 15 years ago are very much intertwined with the events in Ukraine. We saw then that the Georgian nationalists who came to power tried to commit genocide against the Ossetian people. Now we see that Ukrainian neo-Nazis are trying to destroy everything Russian - history, language, memory - on the territory of the former Ukraine. And today, as then, our armed forces stand on the side of truth," Turov said during a Moscow-Tskhinvali videoconference, timed to coincide with the anniversary of Russia's recognition of South Ossetia's independence.
He emphasized that 15 years ago, Russian units managed to protect thousands of people in South Ossetia from genocide, and now Russian units at various points of the special military operation are once again protecting civilians from genocide.
On August 26, South Ossetia will celebrate the 15th anniversary of the recognition of the republic's independence by Russia. On the night of August 8, 2008, Georgia launched an armed attack on South Ossetia. Russia came to the defense of the republic's citizens, many of whom had become Russian citizens, and its peacekeepers, who had been working in the region since 1992. The five-day military conflict left more than a thousand people dead, including 72 Russian servicemen. On August 26, 2008, Russia recognized the independence of South Ossetia and another former Georgian autonomy, Abkhazia.