Donetsk People's Republic–South Ossetia relations ( os, Донецчы Адӕмон Республикӕ-Хуссар Ирыстоны хъуыд, russian: Донецко-южноосетинские отношения) are the bilateral relations between the

Donetsk People's Republic The Donetsk People's Republic ( rus, Донецкая Народная Республика, Donetskaya Narodnaya Respublika, dɐˈnʲetskəjə nɐˈrodnəjə rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə; abbreviated as DPR or DNR, rus, ДНР) is a Territorial ...

(DPR) and

South Ossetia South Ossetia, ka, სამხრეთი ოსეთი, ( , ), officially the Republic of South Ossetia – the State of Alania, is a partially recognised landlocked state in the South Caucasus. It has an officially stated populat ...

. The DPR is a

disputed Controversy is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin ''controversia'', as a composite of ''controversus'' – "turned in an opposite d ...

republic of Russia The Russian Republic,. referred to as the Russian Democratic Federal Republic. in the 1918 Constitution, was a short-lived state which controlled, ''de jure'', the territory of the former Russian Empire after its proclamation by the Russi ...

whereas South Ossetia is a

partially recognized state A number of polities have declared independence and sought diplomatic recognition from the international community as sovereign states, but have not been universally recognised as such. These entities often have ''de facto'' control of their ...

. From April 2014 to September 2022, the DPR portrayed itself as an

independent state Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

, but this is no longer the case after Russia's annexation of the DPR on 30 September 2022. The Russian-annexed DPR is widely internationally unrecognized, with most of the international community regarding the DPR as a Russian military occupation of a portion of Ukraine's

Donetsk Oblast The Donetsk Oblast ( ukr, Донецька область, Donetska oblast, ), also referred to as Donechchyna ( ukr, Донеччина, links=no), is an oblast of eastern Ukraine. It is Ukraine's most populous province, with around 4.1 mill ...

(roughly 60% as of October 2022). Meanwhile, South Ossetia is also widely internationally unrecognized, with most of the international community regarding South Ossetia as a part of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. The DPR and South Ossetia maintained bilateral relations from June 2014 to September 2022. The relations have become defunct in the

international relations International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such as ...

sense ( state-to-state) after Russia's annexation of the DPR. South Ossetia still maintains relations with the DPR in the subnational sense ( state-to-province).

History

In April 2014, pro-Russian separatists in the

Donbas The Donbas or Donbass (, ; uk, Донба́с ; russian: Донба́сс ) is a historical, cultural, and economic region in eastern Ukraine. Parts of the Donbas are controlled by Russian separatist groups as a result of the Russo-Ukrai ...

occupied the city of

Donetsk Donetsk ( , ; uk, Донецьк, translit=Donets'k ; russian: Донецк ), formerly known as Aleksandrovka, Yuzivka (or Hughesovka), Stalin and Stalino (see also: Names of European cities in different languages (C–D), cities' alternat ...

and declared independence from Ukraine, having taken control of a portion of Donetsk Oblast, with the rest of the oblast remaining under Ukrainian rule. In the meantime, South Ossetian Ambassador to Russia

Dmitry Medoyev Dmitry Nikolayevich Medoyev (russian: Дмитрий Николаевич Медоев), born 15 May 1960, is the former foreign minister of South Ossetia. Previously, he was the Ambassador of South Ossetia to the Russian Federation. Previous to ...

received a delegation from DPR Chairman

Denis Pushilin Denis Vladimirovich Pushilin (russian: Дени́с Влади́мирович Пуши́лин, ; uk, Денис Володимирович Пушилін, Denys Volodymyrovych Pushylin; born 9 May 1981) is a Russian and Ukrainian politician ...

at the latter's request. During the meeting, Pushilin asked Medoyev to address an appeal to South Ossetian president

Leonid Tibilov Leonid Kharitonovich Tibilov ( os, Тыбылты Харитъоны фырт Леонид, Tybylty Xarithony fyrt Leonid; russian: Леонид Харитонович Тибилов; ka, ლეონიდ თიბილოვი, Leonid Tibil ...

and parliamentary Chairman Stanislav Kochiev to recognize the DPR's independence. On June 27, South Ossetia's Security Council decided to recognize the Donetsk People's Republic. South Ossetia's president told the media: "I believe the recognition of the Donetsk republic is the right step, South Ossetia's people support and hail the decision to recognize Donetsk and Luhansk." On May 13, 2015, the Donetsk People's Republic Foreign Ministry said in a statement that President

Alexander Zakharchenko Alexander Vladimirovich Zakharchenko uk, Олекса́ндр Володи́мирович Заха́рченко, translit=Oleksandr Volodymyrovych Zakharchenko (26 June 1976 – 31 August 2018) was a Ukrainian separatist leader who was the h ...

signed the decree recognizing

Abkhazia Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which vi ...

and South Ossetia. Celebrations were held in

Tskhinvali Tskhinvali ( ka, ცხინვალი ) or Tskhinval ( os, Цхинвал, Чъреба, Tskhinval, Chreba, ; rus, Цхинва́л(и), r=Tskhinvál(i), ) is the capital of the disputed ''de facto'' independent Republic of South Ossetia, int ...

when Russia recognized Donetsk and Luhansk, organized by the South Ossetian government.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donetsk People's Republic-South Ossetia relations

Bilateral relations of South Ossetia Separatism in Ukraine

History

See also

References