Villagers in Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) are deprived of the opportunity to see their relatives in Georgia, receive a pension and full medical care, the European Union said, urging the authorities of South Ossetia and Russia to resume the work along checkpoints on the Georgian administrative border.

In September 2019, the situation on the line of demarcation between Georgia and South Ossetia escalated after the Georgian military erected a checkpoint near the village of Tsnelis. On September 9 of the same year, the KGB (Committee for State Security) of separatist South Ossetia announced the closure of checkpoints on the administrative border with Georgia for an indefinite period,justifying this by mentioning the "escalation of tensions" by the Georgian authorities. On October 1, 2019, at a meeting in Ergneti, Georgia refused to remove its checkpoint in the Tsnelis area. The South Ossetian side also did not agree to make concessions, stating that the presence of Georgian security forces on its territory was inacceptable.

The EU Delegation to Georgia has called on Russia and Tskhinvali/South Ossetia to open checkpoints on the administrative border, according to a statement published on the delegation's website.

"Two years have passed since the closure of the Odzisi checkpoint on the administrative border of Tskhinvali/South Ossetia. Before the closure of this checkpoint, up to 400 crossings were made daily. In the past two years, ethnic Georgians living in the Akhalgori region have been deprived of the opportunity to cross the border and see their relatives, receive a pension or to exercise the right to education in their native language. In addition, access to medical care is difficult, and reports of shortages of food and medicine continue to surface" the statement says.

The EU Delegation positively assessed the easing of restrictions, which allowed residents of the Akhalgori region to cross the border to receive medical care in Georgian clinics, but called for "greater freedom of movement."

"The EU calls on the de facto authorities of Tskhinvali and the Russian Federation to allow the opening of all crossing points on the administrative border of South Ossetia. The EU Monitoring Mission is ready to facilitate further discussions in the framework of the IPRM (Incident Prevention and Response Mechanisms) in Ergneti," the statement said.

On March 5, 2021, representatives of Georgia and South Ossetia, after a seven-month break, held a meeting in the IPRM format, at which the head of the South Ossetian delegation called the elimination of the Georgian checkpoint near the village of Tsnelis a condition of detente. Georgia, on the other hand, insisted on the release of those convicted in South Ossetia for crossing the border.

Recall that in January 2020, the de-facto South Ossetian authorities temporarily opened the Hrazdakhan checkpoint and allowed pensioners from the Leningor region (in Georgia called Akhalgori) to move to the territory controlled by Tbilisi.

People who crossed the border complained later that they were deprived of access to medical services and could not buy medicines. Due to the fact that Georgian goods and products have ceased to be imported to Leningori (Akhalgori), prices have increased in stores, residents of the border region said.

In 1922-1990, the Leningor region was part of the South Ossetian Autonomous Region. On December 11, 1990, the Supreme Soviet of the Georgian SSR abolished the autonomy of South Ossetia. The territory of the region was administratively incorporated into the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region and it was renamed Akhalgori. During the "Five-Day War'' of 2008, hostilities did not touch the Leningor region, but Georgian police officers, administration officials, and part of the Georgian population left. Russian military units and South Ossetian security forces were stationed on the territory. However, the Leningor region depends on Georgia for energy supply and transport communications.