Non-Traditional Warfare in the South Caucasus: A Case Study of Abkhazia and South Ossetia

Abstract

This study examines the strategic evolution of non-traditional warfare in the Abkhazia and south Ossetia conflicts, focusing on Russia’s hybrid tactics and their impact on Georgia’s political, economic, and security environment. Over time, these conflicts crystallized into frozen disputes, where unresolved territorial status and institutionalized local administrations operate as instruments of strategic leverage. Russia has deployed methodically integrated tactics of hard and soft power to cement control. Practices such as borderization, political co-option, and information work support territorial separation and construct domestic and foreign discourses. Muscovy has leveraged fragmentation, weak institutions, and historical cleavages to influence Georgia’s decision-making and hinder Euro-Atlantic integration. This paper implement a theory of Hybrid Warfare, using military and non- military instrument, following a comparative, qualitative approach. Findings show frozen conflicts function as coercive and structural tools, demonstrating the relevance of hybrid warfare. Strengthening institution, countering misinformation, and promoting conflict resolution ae key to reducing strategic leverage