MOSCOW, May 28 (RIA Novosti) – South Ossetian President Leonid Tibilov has said his people understand the sentiment of Russia’s Crimean republic since both regions had walked the same path toward independence.
“We regarded the processes that Crimea went though, decisions taken on Crimea by the Russian leadership and its people as necessary and urgent, because we have been there, done that,” Ossetia’s leader said.
Tibilov said Ossetians welcomed the self-rule referendums held by Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk and Donetsk regions on May 11.
“We feel positive about the local population expressing their will, and we can sympathize with them,” the president said.
Following a regime change in late February, the citizens of the predominantly Russian-speaking southeastern regions of Ukraine refused to recognize the legitimacy of the country’s interim government and called for federalization and referendums on greater autonomy, with rallies sweeping through the region.
The vote in Ukraine mirrored that in South Ossetia on January 19, 1992. On May 29, 1992, the Supreme Council of the Republic of South Ossetia declared independence, after which mixed Russian, Georgian and Ossetian peacekeeping forces were deployed in the republic.
In August 2008, Russia became the first state to recognize the independence of the Republic of South Ossetia. Since then, its independence has been recognized by Venezuela, Nicaragua and Nauru. Tuvalu recognized South Ossetia’s independence in September 2011 but withdrew its recognition in March 2014.
