Seventeen years have passed since the 2008 Russia-Georgia war.

The Georgian President, Prime Minister, cabinet members, and lawmakers paid tribute to the heroic soldiers who sacrificed their lives in the fight to defend Georgia’s territorial integrity.

They laid wreaths at the memorial and offered condolences to the family members of the perished soldiers.

On August 7, 2008, the separatists in the Tskhinvali region began intensive bombing of Georgian villages, which led to retaliatory fire, and on August 8, the Russian army invaded. The 5-day war took 411 lives and turned 130 thousand people into IDPs. Russian aggression in 2008 destroyed villages, Gori town and strategic buildings. Twenty per cent of Georgian territories remain occupied by Russia.