Prime Minister Vladimir Putin vowed to defend South Ossetia's independence on the same day he presided over the launch of the first pipeline to carry Russian natural gas directly to the breakaway Georgian republic, bypassing Georgia proper.
During a meeting in Moscow between Putin and South Ossetian leader Eduard Kokoity on Wednesday, Gazprom chief executive Alexei Miller called his deputy in the South Ossetian capital and told him to open the valve.
The meeting took place on the first anniversary of Russia's recognition of the independence of South Ossetia and a second breakaway republic, Abkhazia, following a brief war last year between Russia and Georgia.
Putin said Russia would defend their independence.
"I'd like to emphasize once and for all - Russia will not allow any attempts at revenge or new military escapades," he said.
State-controlled Gazprom said it spent 15 billion rubles ($476 million) building the 163-kilometer (98-mile) pipeline from the Russian republic of North Ossetia, with construction beginning in December 2006.
Until Wednesday, South Ossetia received natural gas from Russia via a pipeline that passed through Georgia proper. Russia also shipped liquefied natural gas to South Ossetia.
Gazprom said in a statement that the Ossetian pipeline is vital since supplies passing through Georgia are fraught with "high risks of disruption due to geopolitical reasons."
Putin said South Ossetia might become a transit country for Russian natural gas, and the rest of Georgia could be supplied by the new pipeline.
Kokoity lambasted NATO and the U.S. for assisting Georgia and training its military, which he said could lead to a renewed conflict. He thanked Putin for his support.
"What Russia and personally you, Vladimir Vladimirovich, have done for our small nation will be remembered by our people forever, for generations ahead," Kokoity said. "Decisions you have taken saved a whole nation from extermination."
Georgia blames Russia and the separatists for last year's war, and a top official said Russian and South Ossetian suggestions that Georgia might start a new conflict are groundless.
"The Georgian leadership remains committed solely to the peaceful resolution" of the disputes over South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Georgian government minister Temur Yakobashvili said in the capital, Tbilisi.
General Staff chief Nikolai Makarov said Wednesday that Russia had reduced its troop contingents in South Ossetia and Abkhazia to about 1,700 in each region, Russian news agencies reported.
The statement, made as Makarov accompanied President Dmitry Medvedev on an official visit to Mongolia, came two weeks after Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said there were roughly 3,600 troops in each region.
Russia has blocked international observers from the regions, making confirmation of troop numbers difficult. The Foreign Ministry issued a statement Tuesday warning that "no form of international presence" would be allowed in Abkhazia or South Ossetia unless other countries recognized the regions as independent.
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