From conflict to autonomy in the Caucasus : the Soviet Union and the making of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno Karabakh /

For centuries, various empires, countries, and leaders have fought over the lands of today's Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Nagorno-Karabakh in the South Caucasus. Most recently, Georgia and Russia went to war over Abkhazia and South Ossetia (2008), and Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh (late 1980s to 1994). Currently, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Nagorno-Karabakh claim to be independent states but are recognized by few. Key to understanding these more contemporary territorial disputes is the Bolsheviks' founding of these regions toward the end of the Russian Civil War (1917-22) as autonomous units within what would become the Soviet Union. Saparov (Michigan) provides the only work that examines this process in exceptional detail through unique archival research conducted in several countries. He argues that the Bolsheviks forged these territories largely with practical, short-term goals in mind-bringing the South Caucasus into their new socialist state, ousting foreign competitors, suppressing local conflicts, marginalizing opposition, and gaining support-rather than with an aim for lasting state management based on political maneuvering. Saparov's concentrated study expands understating of Soviet nationality policy, and demonstrates how the peoples of the South Caucasus navigated it. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students/faculty. --Melissa Chakars, Saint Joseph's University