The new de facto leader of Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) Region, Alan Gagloev, supported by the Kremlin, and his team met in Moscow with Russian officials from May 14 to 16 to discuss the currently halted referendum on the so-called “unification of the de facto Republic of South Ossetia and the Russian Federation.” Interlocutors from Russia included Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Dmitry Kozak; Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Konstantin Kosachev; Head of the Presidential Department for Interregional and Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries Igor Maslov; Deputy Secretary of the Security Council Rashid Nurgaliyev; Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko; Russia's Envoy to Tskhinvali Marat Kulakhmetov; and Deputy Head of the Presidential Department for Border Cooperation Sergey Bovenko.
Gagloev also met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who congratulated Gagloev on becoming the region's new leader and emphasised that Moscow-Tskhinvali ties are built on "alliance and strategic partnership." The Foreign Minister said that this relationship is especially important now, when the international situation is being harmed in order to serve the interests of one group of Western states, mostly the United States. During the meeting, FM Lavrov highlighted the significance of, among other things, strong political dialogue, military-technical cooperation, trade and commercial linkages, investments, and humanitarian and cultural contacts between parties. The Russian Foreign Minister added that the Russian military base located in Tskhinvali Region guarantees the security of the de facto state with the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) maintaining safety along the demarcation line.
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