Leonid Tibilov, de facto president of Georgia's breakaway Republic of South Ossetia, has been forced to abandon his plans to hold a referendum in August on amending the region's constitution to empower its leader to request South Ossetia's incorporation into the Russian Federation. On May 26, Tibilov and South Ossetia parliament speaker Anatoly Bibilov issued a joint statement announcing that the referendum will take place only after the presidential election due in early 2017.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: South Ossetia postpones referendum on accession to Russian Federation
A member of a local electoral commission carries a ballot box during a vote in Tskhinvali, the capital of Georgia's maverick region of South Ossetia, on April 8, 2012.
