Since the war between Russia and Ukraine entered its height, different actors from around the globe have been taking part until these days where the fighting between both sides is constant. However, in the last few hours an interesting protagonist has appeared, Chechnya, which could well be key to the future of the contest.
What is Chechnya?
Given its complexity throughout history, Russia is currently made up of up to 83 subjects that make up what is known as the Russian Federation. One of them being the Republic of Chechnya, in recent hours this minority (around 1.4 million inhabitants of the more than 145 million residents throughout the country) has returned to the forefront of the international scene because of the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Where is Chechnya?
A region located north of the Caucasus, less than 100 kilometers from the Caspian Sea and bordering, among other regions, with Georgia. Therein lies one of its most important aspects and that is that it has always been of interest from Moscow due to its geographical position. Since the eighteenth century, when the first great annexations of the Russian Empire date back, with the fall of the Soviet Union, Chechnya saw its opportunity to be independent.
Why the particularity of Chechnya in Russia?
Something that he achieved a few months after the disintegration of the USSR, then beginning a persecution against those non-Chechen citizens in the territory. However, in 1994 Russian forces invaded Grozny, its capital, and thus began the two Chechen wars that first left Chechnya a victory -with de facto independence until 1999-, and then complete control from Moscow -which lasted until the today – although with a partially autonomous government that is accused of a lack of transparency (dissident media have denounced, for example, that in Chechnya there are ).
Of an Islamic character, the most radical side of this region has been the cause of different terrorist attacks during the 21st century. For this reason, the classification of the Caucasian Front, a military branch, as a terrorist group, as it is understood that it has direct support from Al Qaeda or other similar organizations.
This is how Chechnya can be key in the war between Russia and Ukraine
Therefore, always in natural conflict with Russia, however in the state war led by Vladimir Putin with Ukraine, Chechnya can be key for the aid to which it has always been its rival. This has been stated in recent hours by the leader Ramzan Kadyrov, making it clear that Russia “has made the right decision by invading Ukraine and therefore they will carry out the orders” of Putin.
Hence the sending of what are officially 10,000 men to Ukrainian territory, some sources speak of an excessive army of 70,000 citizens (it has 1.4 million inhabitants), which has already begun to be seen in cities near kyiv. Chechnya’s goal would be to “ensure the safety of its citizens,” so “they don’t want Russia to be attacked using Ukraine.”
Various media assure that the objective of the Chechen forces in Ukraine is to capture the main leaders of these
Kadyrov fights “against those who killed them and want to kill them” and therefore this support for the Russian army, which would also have a so-called ‘Death Squad’ that seeks to capture some of the main Ukrainian leaders.
A complex reality is that of Chechnya, which has now entered fully into the conflict between Russia and Ukraine to try to tilt the war towards its interests and those of a people that, historically, has entered into conflict with the Russians, but to which it now shows his support to “carry out Putin’s orders under any circumstances”.
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