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Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitri Medvedev said Moscow could annex the separatist regions of Georgia, South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
"The idea of union with Russia continues to be popular in Abkhazia and South Ossetia," writes former president Medvedev, in an article published early Wednesday by the newspaper "Argumenty I Fakty."
"It is very likely to be implemented if there are good reasons to do so," said Mr Medvedev, who has emerged as one of Russia's toughest political voices since its forces launched an aggression against Ukraine in February 2022.
Moscow recognized the independence of the two regions in 2008, after Georgia's attempt to regain control of South Ossetia resulted in a Russian counterattack.
Although Russia's relations with Georgia have improved since then, Mr Medvedev accused the West of creating tensions with the country by considering its possible NATO membership.
"We will not wait if our concerns become more concrete," Mr Medvedev wrote in the article marking the 15th anniversary of Russia's recognition of the two regions' independence, referring to a possible annexation.
Georgian officials have repeatedly said they are committed to joining the US-led military alliance that would preserve the country's territorial integrity.
Russia announced in September of last year the annexations of four regions of Ukraine, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, but none of the annexations are internationally recognized./VOA
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