Publication

On the face of it, life along the administrative boundary line (ABL) between Shida Kartli and South Ossetia has improved substantially since the August 2008 war. The intervening period has seen the return of a large proportion of those displaced from the Georgian-controlled side of the ABL. Security actors have been successful in reducing tensions and preventing major incidents, in spite of failure by the parties to the conflict to agree on a security mechanism for the region in the official negotiations. Indeed, at the time of writing, the threat of an escalation or a return to violence is low.