1991–1992 South Ossetia War place around the city in the nearby villages and along the road to North Ossetia. In spring 1992 the fighting escalated again, with sporadic Russian involvement. However, in March 1992, Gamsakhurdia was ousted and replaced by Eduard Shevardnadze. Soon after, Gamsakhurdia loyalists staged an armed rebellion. Furthermore, the conflict with Georgia's other, bigger, separatist region Abkhazia, escalated into a war in 1992. As a result, Shevardnadze had an interest in ending the conflict in South Ossetia and signed the Russian-brokered Sochi agreement. The ceasefire agreement left South Ossetia divided into areas controlled by Georgia and areas controlled by the unrecognised
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