South Ossetia had ended. The war displaced 192,000 people, and while many were able to return to their homes after the war, a year later around 30,000 ethnic Georgians remained displaced. In an interview published in "Kommersant", South Ossetian leader Eduard Kokoity said he would not allow Georgians to return. President of France Nicolas Sarkozy negotiated a ceasefire agreement on 12 August 2008. On 17 August, Russian president Dmitry Medvedev announced that Russian forces would begin to pull out of Georgia the following day. Russia recognised Abkhazia and South Ossetia as separate republics on 26 August. In response to Russia's recognition, the
Abkhazia–Russia relations Abkhazia–Russia relations Abkhazia–Russia relations () is the bilateral relationship between the Republic of Abkhazia and the Russian Federation. Russia recognised Abkhazia on 26 August 2008, following the August 2008 South Ossetia war. Abkhazia and Russia established diplomatic relations on 9 September 2008. On 21 August 2008, the same day as a similar event in South Ossetia, a rally was held in Sukhum at which an estimated 47,00050,000 people appealed to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and the Russian Federal Assembly for official recognition of their independence as a sovereign state. On 25 August 2008 President of Abkhazia Sergei Bagapsh made a