Abkhazia and South Ossetia - your views?

[Albion]

I was half expecting Russia to incorporate them as republic or oblasts. I suppose they have done in all but name really.

[Padre Organtino]

Abkhazia has a real tradition of integration with Russia. South Ossetia strikes me as a more artificial construction of Russia. The former has a stronger claim than the latter.

Abkhazia doesn't really have a strong tradition of integration with Russia but it certainly was always more detached from Georgia than SO which was basically a Georgian territory with periodical settlement waves of Ossetians who were migrating from the North.

[Sarmatian]

If we leave legitimacy of existance of Abkhazia and Ossetia as independent entities aside and talk strictly about Russia involvement... I would say so long as its stops neighbors from exterminating each other its a positive thing.

[Den Pobedy]

Some people had questions on the Religion of the Abkhaz. This comes from Wikipedia.

"According to a survey held in 2003, 60% of respondents identified themselves as Christian, 16% as Muslim, 8% as atheist or irreligious and 8% as adhering to the traditional Abkhazian religion or as Pagan"