South Ossetia South Ossetia South Ossetia (, ), officially the Republic of South Ossetia–the State of Alania, or The Tskhinvali Region, is a disputed territory in the South Caucasus, in the northern part of the internationally recognised Georgian territory. It has a population of 53,000 people who live in an area of 3,900 km, south of the Russian Caucasus, with 30,000 living in Tskhinvali. The separatist polity, Republic of South Ossetia (or the "State of Alania"), is recognised as a state by Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru, and Syria. While Georgia lacks control over South Ossetia, the Georgian government and most members of
Russia–South Ossetia relations the first Russian Ambassador to South Ossetia, Elbrus Kargiyev, who presented his Letters of Credence to South Ossetian President Eduard Kokoity on 16 December 2008. Dmitry Medoyev, the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of Republic of South Ossetia to Russia was appointed by Eduard Kokoity as South Ossetia's first ambassador to Russia on 13 January 2009. Medoyev presented his credentials to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on 16 January 2009. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin issued a directive to set up a Russian embassy in South Ossetia in 2009. Eduard Kokoity said during talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that it