1991–1992 South Ossetia War violation of ceasefires, taking of hostages and bombardment of civilian targets. According to Human Rights Watch, during the war Georgian paramilitary groups committed acts of violence against Ossetian civilians within South Ossetia that were motivated by the desire to expel Ossetians and reclaim villages for Georgia, and by sheer revenge against the Ossetian people. Between 60 and 100 villages were burned down, destroyed by Georgian forces or otherwise abandoned. Several villages were ethnically cleansed by Georgian forces. On the other side, Georgians living in Ossetian controlled territory were "easy targets": Houses occupied by Georgians were singled out, looted and burned
Russia–South Ossetia relations would proceed as planned. In an August 2009 interview to RIA Novosti, Eduard Kokoity stated that he does not believe there is a need for an increase Russian military presence in South Ossetia, and that the Russian Border Guards have eased tensions in Georgian populated areas of the Republic. The "alliance and integration" treaty signed between Russia and South Ossetia in March 2015 formally incorporated the South Ossetian military into the Russian Armed Forces. Due to its small population and lack of natural resources, the economy of South Ossetia is entirely dependent on Russian finance and assistance, and it was