Bomb ready to explode
I have to repeat in many ways my last year's article "The Kadyrov Project", because it is becoming more and more frighteningly relevant.
I will start, just as then, with the prophetic words of my teacher in politics, Dmitry Efimovich Furman, said by him in his wonderful work, published on the eve of the second Chechen war unleashed as part of Operation Heir.
“The deportation of Chechens in 1944 for the Chechen consciousness means approximately the same as for the Jewish - the Nazi genocide or for the Armenians - the massacre of 1915. This is a terrible trauma, the memory of this and the horror of the possibility of repeating this haunts every Chechen. And the events of the war revived this horror ...
And even if we could imagine that by some miracle, having gathered our strength, we could subjugate Chechnya and bring it into the Federation, this would only liken Russia to a person in whose body there is a time bomb, which after some time sure to explode."
Indeed, by some miracle we brought Chechnya into the Federation, but today, when the ticking of this clockwork inside the Russian body is again heard by everyone, we simply have to figure out the fate of our relations with the most difficult people for Russia.
Let's start with the miracle of how we nevertheless dragged Chechnya into the Russian Federation as a result of the second Chechen war. The creator of this miracle is Vladimir Putin, and it is called the Kadyrov project.
Why did we fight twice in Chechnya? For the territorial integrity of Russia. For Chechnya as part of Russia. But territorial integrity is not a scorched earth without people. We fought to prove to the Chechens that they are citizens of Russia. But at the same time, we destroyed their cities and villages with aviation and multiple launch rocket systems (“And in the open field, the Grad system, Putin and Stalingrad are behind us”), kidnapped civilians, whose corpses were later found with traces of torture.
We constantly proved to the Chechens just the opposite of what we proclaimed: we proved to them with all our behavior that for us they are not citizens of Russia, that we no longer consider them citizens of Russia, but their cities and villages are Russian. And they convincingly proved this not only to Chechens, but to all Caucasians. They learned well the object lessons taught to them.
Mr. Putin was very often remembered and is remembered for that pretentious toilet call that set the tone for the second Chechen war and determined its sad outcome for Russia. We must give Putin his due: faced with a choice between the very bad and the monstrous after several years of a bloody war started for his coming to power, the president chose the very bad.
Admitting his defeat, he gave all power in Chechnya to Kadyrov and his army and pays him an indemnity with budgetary transfers. In response, Kadyrov formally declares not so much loyalty to the Kremlin as his personal union with Putin. It would be monstrous to continue the war to exterminate the Chechen ethnic group - in a shamanic way, in a Budanov way.
Having unleashed and lost the war in the Caucasus, the Kremlin pays in exchange for ostentatious obedience tribute-indemnity not only to Kadyrov, but also to the criminal elites of other republics. It is used to buy palaces and golden pistols for local leaders. Declassed unemployed young highlanders go to the warriors of Allah or migrate from the Caucasus to Russian cities. And in the depressive neighborhoods of Biryulyovo, a generation of children of those who absolutely and forever lost during the twenty years of "market" economic reforms has already grown up. Mentally, there is a yawning abyss between the Russian youth and the Caucasian youth, who grew up from childhood in the conditions of a brutal war, first Chechen, and then the all-Caucasian.
Young Muscovites march through the city shouting “Stop feeding the Caucasus!”, while young highlanders behave defiantly and aggressively on the streets of Russian cities. They have developed a winning mentality. In their view, Moscow lost the Caucasian war and they behave accordingly in the defeated capital. In the minds and hearts of the Caucasus and Russia are rapidly moving away from each other. At the same time, neither the Kremlin nor the North Caucasian "elites" are ready for a formal separation.
The Kremlin still lives with phantom imperial illusions about vast "zones of privileged interests" far beyond the borders of Russia - either about some kind of Eurasian horde, of which Putin dreams of becoming a khan for life, or about the "Russian World" that is constantly expanding at the expense of its neighbors, or about the Syrian " Orthodox shrines. The local kings, starting with Kadyrov, do not want to refuse the tribute paid to them by Moscow.
The post-imperial campaign for "Chechnya as part of Russia" turns into a nightmare of "Russia as part of Chechnya" with a cruel mockery of fate. The situation of hypocritical self-deception, humiliating for Russia, cannot continue indefinitely. But there are no ways out of it within the framework of the ruling diarchy Putin-Kadyrov. A simple way out was always seen by the security forces, who from the very beginning were extremely skeptical about Putin's Kadyrov project, in their view in once more snatched "victory" out of their hands. They were never able to come to terms with the loss of Chechnya as a zone of their feeding and, what was even more important for them, a zone of their heady power over life and death. The Kadyrov project deprived them of these two basic pleasures, and they sincerely hate Kadyrov for this.
It is striking that our broad “liberal” public does not understand the essence of the conflict between the Russian security forces and Kadyrov that emerged after the assassination of Nemtsov. You read the regular FSB leaks and you might think that the ashes of the murdered Nemtsov are knocking on the hearts of Messrs. Bortnikov or Patrushev. Their indignant mind boils, and they are ready to lead the most fundamental battle for the observance of the norms of capitalist legality. The murder of Nemtsov is not a reason for them, but an occasion for a decisive showdown with Kadyrov. Moreover, the reason, most likely, is skillfully designed by them.
Firstly, the murder on Red Square could not have been carried out without the assistance of the top leaders of the Russian special services. Secondly, the alleged perpetrator, Zaur Dadaev, deputy commander of the elite Sever detachment, would never have attacked him without Kadyrov’s order, and Kadyrov could have given such an order either at Putin’s direct request, or having received information about the leader’s such wish from someone from top leaders of the state. The bloody party conceived, carried out and exploits the assassination of Nemtsov not as an end in itself, but as a detonator for the realization of their far-reaching political aspirations. Apparently, the Kadyrovites were given to understand that the order for the liquidation comes from the pope himself. It seemed so certain that they didn't doubt it for a second. The perpetrators were absolutely sure of their impunity.
The main direction of the coordinated attack of the security forces is the maximum discrediting in the public field of Kadyrov, and through him, of Putin, who patronizes him, if he refuses to leak him. But it was very difficult for Putin to hand over Kadyrov. The closure of the Kadyrov project under pressure from the security forces would be the official recognition of Russia's defeat in the second Chechen war and the announcement of a third. This is a return to 1999 in a much worse starting position. And besides, the complete political delegitimization of Putin - "the savior of the fatherland in 1999." Putin has not handed over Kadyrov yet, forcing the investigation to confine itself to some driver named as the main customer. But, it seems to me, the security forces did not completely abandon their plans.
And what did the Kadyrov project mean for Chechnya itself, and what would its closure by the security forces lead to? Under the omnipotence of the federals, any Chechen, regardless of his views or actions, could be seized by the federals, kidnapped, subjected to abuse, torture, and killed. In today's Chechnya, the same fate can befall any Chechen who opposes Kadyrov. This is a huge advance in the security of the individual. There is a fundamental difference between the status of a Jew in Hitler's Germany and a German in the same country. It was this radical change that created Kadyrov's base of support. Of course, during the years of his power, he had both enemies and bloodlines. But any attempt by the security forces to return to their former arbitrariness will unite Chechen society in fierce resistance.
A convincing and very timely indicator of the vector of those changes that the security forces are dreaming about was the murder in Grozny of Chechen Dzhambulat Dadaev by Interior Ministry officers who arrived from Stavropol. Even from the helplessly false statement of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, made after the murder, it clearly follows that the fighters did not come to detain the suspect, but to liquidate the victim. This is a routine daily practice that the security forces have resorted to for years in Chechnya and are regularly used in Dagestan and other North Caucasian republics. These liquidations are so commonplace that they are even often shown in news stories on federal channels, apparently for the purpose of patriotic education of young people. But Kadyrov stopped such safaris for the federals in Chechnya. He left this privilege only to himself. And again, the Chechens do not want to turn from Germans into Jews of the Nazi Reich. And they will resist such a prospect. With Kadyrov or without Kadyrov.
Here are some statements by various well-known Chechens, from Kadyrov to Zakayev, made after the liquidation in Grozny.
“The days of the 2000s are over. Someone wanted to "make a result" - they took the Chechen and killed him. This will not happen. Enough. We were humiliated and insulted. We did not adopt the Constitution in order to be killed.”
“In the memory of people, extrajudicial executions, illegal detentions and arrests, torture and other mass violations of human rights committed by unknown people in masks on cars and armored personnel carriers without identification marks are still quite fresh. local residents. We have five thousand people missing. Hundreds of thousands have been killed."
“Today, the population of Chechnya will, of course, support Ramzan Kadyrov. He enjoys the loyalty of the Chechens precisely because he protects them. People link the end of the purges and outrages that took place in Chechnya to the name of Kadyrov.”
Cleanups and massacres committed in Chechnya on behalf of the Russian authorities for centuries. We all remember the testimony of a Russian officer, a participant in this endless Caucasian war: “The old owners gathered in the square and, squatting, discussed their position. Nobody spoke about hatred of Russians. The feeling experienced by all Chechens, young and old, was stronger than hatred. It was not hatred, but the non-recognition of these Russian dogs by people and such disgust, disgust and bewilderment at the ridiculous cruelty of these creatures that the desire to exterminate them, like the desire to exterminate rats, poisonous spiders and wolves, was the same natural feeling as the feeling of self-preservation.
I read "Hadji Murad" as a child, but only relatively recently did I understand the meaning of these terrible, unbearable words for the Russian consciousness - after the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, its investigation and the trial of the direct perpetrators. Anna, who wrote the truth about the crimes of the Russian government in Chechnya, was a saint. In heavenly Jerusalem, her place is in the Alley of the Righteous. Her lines were filled with unbearable human pain, the suffering of the torn bodies and souls of the victims. To them who died in hell, Anna returned sympathy and dignity after death. Ordered and organized her murder Russian imperious scoundrels. The killers were provided with logistical support by two operational groups of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSB. But the Chechens killed her.
And neither her murder nor the publication of the names of her killers shocked the Chechen society. It remained absolutely indifferent to the fate of Anna. It was concerned with how to hide from the court Rustam Makhmudov, who shot at Anna. It seemed to me completely incomprehensible until I finally understood a simple thing. Putin and Politkovskaya and the rest of us are largely indistinguishable for many Chechens.
Both the one and the other, like all of us, by the fact of their birth, belong in their perception to the category of those very beings for whom they feel a feeling that is stronger than hatred. For them, Putin is just a useful infidel - today's godfather of these creatures, with whom they have to conduct important negotiations and make deals. Bringing him the head of an insignificant journalist he hates as a gift on his birthday can be a useful tactical move for the Chechen ethnos. The same story with Nemtsov. Under the blueprint. But Nemtsov, after all, collected a million signatures in Nizhny Novgorod, brought them to the Kremlin and did a lot to stop the first Chechen war.
But after all that heaped up in Chechnya in the XIX, XX and XXI centuries Romanovs and Yermolovs, Stalins and Yeltsins, Putins and Shamanovs, this feeling has become so all-consuming for Chechens that they simply don't bother trying to understand the shades of Russians anymore. Two ethnic groups with such a stable attitude towards each other cannot live in one state. The Kadyrov project, with its ticking bomb, delayed the solution of the problem for a decade, but its time has run out.
The latest crazy media performances of Kadyrov's people sharply turn the majority against them Russian society, despite the fact that the threats apply only to liberals. This plays into the hands of the security forces, who may again demand that Putin remove Kadyrov, now relying on broad public support.
Oil was added to the fire by the story of the Krasnoyarsk deputy, whom the Chechen diaspora forced to humiliatingly apologize to Kadyrov. As a result, Putin finds himself in the role of almost the only person, which does not protect, to put it mildly, the beloved Russian people Chechen leader.
Kadyrov is making a big mistake by exaggerating Putin's ability to keep the situation under control, since the patron has found himself in an extremely vulnerable position against the backdrop of not only external, but emerging internal isolation, and even against the backdrop of large-scale economic crisis. With his wild statements and threats, Kadyrov not only does not help the boss, but also increases his isolation, opposing Putin not only to the security forces and sislibs, but to the entire Russian society.
One of the leaders of the non-systemic opposition, Navalny, as you know, has already accused Kadyrov of intending to formalize the separation of Chechnya from Russia and create an Islamic state:
“Well, finally, I will repeat what I have said many times: Kadyrov's strategic task is to separate from Russia and create his own authoritarian state under the guise of Islamic slogans. He just waits for the moment when there is absolutely no money in the budget.”
Golden words for the ears of our security officials, who have long dreamed of closing the Kadyrov project. Here it is that broad public support, on which they can rely on in unleashing the 3rd Chechen war. To prevent Kadyrov's treason and his flight, together with the republic, from Russian Federation, which, Vladimir Vladimirovich, has been warned many times not only by us, but also by patriotic-minded opposition leaders.
And on the same day, A. Navalny, for some reason, posts on his blog a detailed conduit “How the Chechens fought for Hitler”, pushing the reader to justify the genocide of 1944.
It is hard to get rid of the impression that Navalny is deliberately preparing his many supporters and admirers to support the security forces' plans for yet another "restoration of constitutional order." And he does this, of course, not by someone else's order, but by virtue of his fundamental convictions.
A politician who is going to lead the country does not understand that such a scenario would be a disaster not only for Chechnya, but above all for Russia.
Not about the return of Kadyrov's totalitarian offshore to our domestic Putin's "legal" field through an even more bloody third Chechen war, we must think today. And about the liberation of us from the imperial obsession, forcing the third century in a row to tear apart with shells and bombs a piece of land inhabited by a people that has not submitted to us, the most difficult for us.
The ticking clockwork of the Russian-Chechen catastrophe can be stopped only by the immediate withdrawal of Chechnya from Russia, and the withdrawal of Russia from Chechnya.
A.Piontkovsky
I have to repeat in many ways my last year's article "The Kadyrov Project", because it is becoming more and more ominously topical.
I will start, just as then, with the prophetic words of my teacher in politics, Dmitry Efimovich Furman, said by him in his wonderful work “The Most Difficult People for Russia”, published on the eve of the second Chechen war unleashed as part of Operation Heir.
« The deportation of Chechens in 1944 for the Chechen consciousness means approximately the same as for the Jewish - the Hitler genocide or for the Armenian - the massacre of 1915. This is a terrible trauma, the memory of this and the horror of the possibility of repeating this haunts every Chechen. And the events of the war revived this horror ...
And even if we could imagine that by some miracle, having gathered our strength, we could subjugate Chechnya and bring it into the Federation, this would only liken Russia to a person in whose body there is a time bomb, which after some time sure to explode».
Indeed, by some miracle we brought Chechnya into the Federation, but today, when the ticking of this clockwork inside the Russian body is again heard by everyone, we simply have to figure out the fate of our relations with the most difficult people for Russia.
Let's start with the miracle of how we nevertheless dragged Chechnya into the Russian Federation as a result of the second Chechen war. The creator of this miracle is Vladimir Putin, and it is called the Kadyrov project.
Why did we fight twice in Chechnya? For the territorial integrity of Russia. For Chechnya as part of Russia. But territorial integrity is not a scorched earth without people. We fought to prove to the Chechens that they are citizens of Russia. But at the same time, we destroyed their cities and villages with aviation and multiple launch rocket systems (“And in the open field, the Grad system, Putin and Stalingrad are behind us”), kidnapped civilians, whose corpses were later found with traces of torture.
We constantly proved to the Chechens just the opposite of what we proclaimed: we proved to them with all our behavior that for us they are not citizens of Russia, that we no longer consider them citizens of Russia, but their cities and villages are Russian. And they convincingly proved this not only to Chechens, but to all Caucasians. They learned well the object lessons taught to them.
Mr. Putin was very often remembered and still remembers that pretentious outhouse appeal that set the tone for the second Chechen war and determined its sad outcome for Russia. We must give Putin his due: after several years of a bloody war started for his coming to power, facing a choice between the very bad and the monstrous, the president chose the very bad.
Admitting his defeat, he gave all power in Chechnya to Kadyrov and his army and pays him an indemnity with budgetary transfers. In response, Kadyrov formally declares not so much loyalty to the Kremlin as his personal union with Putin. It would be monstrous to continue the war to exterminate the Chechen ethnic group - in the shaman style, in the Budan style.
Having unleashed and lost the war in the Caucasus, the Kremlin pays in exchange for ostentatious obedience tribute-indemnity not only to Kadyrov, but also to the criminal elites of other republics. It is used to buy palaces and golden pistols for local leaders. Declassed unemployed young highlanders go to the warriors of Allah or migrate from the Caucasus to Russian cities. And in the depressive neighborhoods of Biryulyovo, a generation of children of those who absolutely and forever lost during the twenty years of "market" economic reforms has already grown up. Mentally, there is a yawning abyss between the Russian youth and the Caucasian youth, who grew up from childhood in the conditions of a brutal war, first Chechen, and then the all-Caucasian.
Young Muscovites march through the city shouting “Stop feeding the Caucasus!”, while young highlanders behave defiantly and aggressively on the streets of Russian cities. They have developed a winning mentality. In their view, Moscow lost the Caucasian war and they behave accordingly in the defeated capital. In the minds and hearts of the Caucasus and Russia are rapidly moving away from each other. At the same time, neither the Kremlin nor the North Caucasian "elites" are ready for a formal separation.
The Kremlin still lives with phantom imperial illusions about vast “zones of privileged interests” far beyond the borders of Russia – either about some kind of Eurasian horde, of which Putin dreams of becoming a khan for life, or about the “Russian World” that is constantly expanding at the expense of its neighbors, or about the Syrian “Orthodox shrines." The local kings, starting with Kadyrov, do not want to refuse the tribute paid to them by Moscow.
The post-imperial campaign for "Chechnya as part of Russia" turns into a nightmare of "Russia as part of Chechnya" with a cruel mockery of fate. The situation of hypocritical self-deception, humiliating for Russia, cannot continue indefinitely. But there are no ways out of it within the framework of the ruling diarchy Putin-Kadyrov. A simple way out was always seen by the security forces, who from the very beginning were extremely skeptical about Putin's project "Kadyrov", in their view, once again snatched "victory" from their hands. They could never come to terms with the loss of Chechnya as a zone of their feeding and, what was even more important for them, a zone of their heady power over life and death. The Kadyrov project deprived them of these two basic pleasures, and they sincerely hate Kadyrov for this.
It is striking that our broad “liberal” public does not understand the essence of the conflict between the Russian security forces and Kadyrov that emerged after the assassination of Nemtsov. You read the regular FSB leaks and you might think that the ashes of the murdered Nemtsov are knocking on the hearts of Messrs. Bortnikov or Patrushev. Their indignant mind boils, and they are ready to lead the most fundamental battle for the observance of the norms of capitalist legality. The murder of Nemtsov is not a reason for them, but an occasion for a decisive showdown with Kadyrov. Moreover, the reason, most likely, is skillfully designed by them.
Firstly, the murder on Red Square could not have been carried out without the assistance of the top leaders of the Russian special services. Secondly, the alleged perpetrator, Zaur Dadaev, deputy commander of the elite Sever detachment, would never have attacked him without Kadyrov’s order, and Kadyrov could have given such an order either at Putin’s direct request, or having received information about the leader’s such wish from someone from top leaders of the state. The bloody party conceived, carried out and exploits the assassination of Nemtsov not as an end in itself, but as a detonator for the realization of their far-reaching political aspirations. Apparently, the Kadyrovites were given to understand that the order for the liquidation comes from the pope himself. It seemed so certain that they didn't doubt it for a second. The perpetrators were absolutely sure of their impunity.
The main direction of the coordinated attack of the security forces is the maximum discrediting in the public field of Kadyrov, and through him, of Putin, who patronizes him, if he refuses to leak him. But it was very difficult for Putin to hand over Kadyrov. The closure of the Kadyrov project under pressure from the security forces would be the official recognition of Russia's defeat in the second Chechen war and the announcement of a third. This is a return to 1999 in a much worse starting position. And besides, the complete political delegitimization of Putin - "the savior of the fatherland in 1999." Putin has not handed over Kadyrov yet, forcing the investigation to confine itself to some driver named as the main customer. But, it seems to me, the security forces did not completely abandon their plans.
And what did the Kadyrov project mean for Chechnya itself, and what would its closure by the security forces lead to? Under the omnipotence of the federals, any Chechen, regardless of his views or actions, could be seized by the federals, kidnapped, subjected to abuse, torture, and killed. In today's Chechnya, the same fate can befall any Chechen who opposes Kadyrov. This is a huge advance in the security of the individual. There is a fundamental difference between the status of a Jew in Hitler's Germany and a German in the same country. It was this radical change that created Kadyrov's base of support. Of course, during the years of his power, he had both enemies and bloodlines. But any attempt by the security forces to return to their former arbitrariness will unite Chechen society in fierce resistance.
A convincing and very timely indicator of the vector of those changes that the security forces are dreaming about was the murder in Grozny of Chechen Dzhambulat Dadaev by Interior Ministry officers who arrived from Stavropol. Even from the helplessly false statement of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, made after the murder, it clearly follows that the fighters did not come to detain the suspect, but to liquidate the victim. This is a routine daily practice that the security forces have resorted to for years in Chechnya and are regularly used in Dagestan and other North Caucasian republics. These liquidations are so commonplace that they are even often shown in news stories on federal channels, apparently for the purpose of patriotic education of young people. But Kadyrov stopped such safaris for the federals in Chechnya. He left this privilege only to himself. And again, the Chechens do not want to turn from Germans into Jews of the Nazi Reich. And they will resist such a prospect. With Kadyrov or without Kadyrov.
Here are some statements by various well-known Chechens, from Kadyrov to Zakayev, made after the liquidation in Grozny.
« The days of the 2000s are over. Someone wanted to "make a result" - they took the Chechen and killed him. This will not happen. Enough. We were humiliated and insulted. We did not adopt the Constitution to be killed».
« Extrajudicial executions, illegal detentions and arrests, torture and other mass violations of human rights committed by unknown people in masks on cars and armored personnel carriers without identification marks in relation to local residents are still quite fresh in the memory of people. We have five thousand people missing. Hundreds of thousands killed».
« Today, the population of Chechnya will, of course, support Ramzan Kadyrov. He enjoys the loyalty of the Chechens precisely because he protects them. People link the end of the purges and outrages that took place in Chechnya to the name of Kadyrov».
Cleansing operations and massacres have been carried out in Chechnya on behalf of the Russian authorities for centuries. We all remember the testimony of a Russian officer, a participant in this endless Caucasian war: “The old owners gathered in the square and, squatting, discussed their position. Nobody spoke about hatred of Russians. The feeling experienced by all Chechens, young and old, was stronger than hatred. It was not hatred, but the non-recognition of these Russian dogs by people and such disgust, disgust and bewilderment at the ridiculous cruelty of these creatures that the desire to exterminate them, like the desire to exterminate rats, poisonous spiders and wolves, was the same natural feeling as the feeling of self-preservation.
I read "Hadji Murad" as a child, but only relatively recently did I understand the meaning of these terrible, unbearable words for the Russian consciousness - after the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, its investigation and the trial of the direct perpetrators. Anna, who wrote the truth about the crimes of the Russian government in Chechnya, was a saint. In heavenly Jerusalem, her place is in the Alley of the Righteous. Her lines were filled with unbearable human pain, the suffering of the torn bodies and souls of the victims. To them who died in hell, Anna returned sympathy and dignity after death. Ordered and organized her murder Russian imperious scoundrels. The killers were provided with logistical support by two operational groups of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSB. But the Chechens killed her.
And neither her murder nor the publication of the names of her killers shocked the Chechen society. It remained absolutely indifferent to the fate of Anna. It was concerned with how to hide from the court Rustam Makhmudov, who shot at Anna. It seemed to me completely incomprehensible until I finally understood a simple thing. Putin and Politkovskaya and the rest of us are largely indistinguishable for many Chechens.
Both the one and the other, like all of us, by the fact of their birth, belong in their perception to the category of those very beings for whom they feel a feeling that is stronger than hatred. Putin is just a useful giaour for them - today's boss of these creatures, with whom they have to conduct important negotiations and make deals. Bringing him the head of an insignificant journalist he hates as a gift on his birthday can be a useful tactical move for the Chechen ethnos. Same story with Nemtsov. Under the blueprint. But Nemtsov, after all, collected a million signatures in Nizhny Novgorod, brought them to the Kremlin and did a lot to stop the first Chechen war.
But after everything that the Romanovs and Yermolovs, Stalins and Yeltsins, Putins and Shamanovs did in Chechnya in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, this feeling has become so all-consuming for Chechens that they simply don’t bother trying to understand the shades of Russians anymore. Two ethnic groups with such a stable attitude towards each other cannot live in one state. The Kadyrov project, with its ticking bomb, delayed the solution of the problem for a decade, but its time has run out.
The latest crazy media performances by the Kadyrovites sharply set the majority of Russian society against them, despite the fact that the threats apply only to liberals. This plays into the hands of the security forces, who may again demand that Putin remove Kadyrov, now relying on broad public support.
Oil was added to the fire by the story of the Krasnoyarsk deputy, whom the Chechen diaspora forced to humiliatingly apologize to Kadyrov. As a result, Putin finds himself in the role of almost the only person who defends the Chechen leader, not very, to put it mildly, beloved by the Russian people.
Kadyrov is making a big mistake by exaggerating Putin's ability to keep the situation under control, since the patron has found himself in an extremely vulnerable position against the backdrop of isolation, not only external, but emerging internal, and even against the backdrop of a large-scale economic crisis. With his wild statements and threats, Kadyrov not only does not help the boss, but also increases his isolation, opposing Putin not only to the security forces and sislibs, but to the entire Russian society.
One of the leaders of the non-systemic opposition, Navalny, as you know, has already accused Kadyrov of intending to formalize the separation of Chechnya from Russia and create an Islamic state:
« Well, finally, I will repeat what I have said many times: Kadyrov's strategic task is to separate from Russia and create his own authoritarian state under the guise of Islamic slogans. He just waits for the moment when there is absolutely no money in the budget.».
Golden words for the ears of our security officials, who have long dreamed of closing the Kadyrov project. Here it is that broad public support, on which they can rely on in unleashing the 3rd Chechen war. To prevent Kadyrov's treachery and his flight, together with the republic, from the Russian Federation, which, Vladimir Vladimirovich, has been warned many times not only by us, but also by patriotic-minded opposition leaders.
And on the same day, A. Navalny, for some reason, posts on his blog a detailed conduit “How the Chechens fought for Hitler”, pushing the reader to justify the genocide of 1944.
It is hard to get rid of the impression that Navalny is deliberately preparing his many supporters and admirers to support the plans of the security forces for another " restoration of constitutional order". And he does this, of course, not by someone else's order, but by virtue of his fundamental convictions.
A politician who is going to lead the country does not understand that such a scenario would be a disaster not only for Chechnya, but above all for Russia.
Not about the return of Kadyrov's totalitarian offshore to our domestic Putin's "legal" field through an even more bloody third Chechen war, we must think today. And about the liberation of us from the imperial obsession, forcing the third century in a row to tear apart with shells and bombs a piece of land inhabited by a people that has not submitted to us, the most difficult for us.
On July 5, it became known that FSB officers had seized the correspondence between the website of the Ekho Moskvy radio station and publicist Andrei Piontkovsky as part of a criminal case. In addition, two employees of the editorial office were summoned for questioning by the FSB as witnesses. The first deputy editor-in-chief of Ekho Moskvy, Vladimir Varfolomeev, noted that the procedure lasted two hours and the seizure of documents did not affect the operation of the radio station.
The reason for the FSB check was Andrey Piontkovsky's article "A Bomb Ready to Explode", published at the end of January in the blog of the Ekho Moskvy radio station. The article last winter caused a great resonance. Andrei Piontkovsky attempted a historical and political analysis of the relationship between the Russian and Chechen peoples, as well as the rulers Russian Empire, the USSR and the Russian Federation and the leaders of Chechnya when it was only part of the Russian monarchy, an autonomous Soviet republic and a republic within the Russian Federation.
Andrei Piontkovsky, with his characteristic straightforwardness, dumped everything he knew about the issue under discussion into one pot, especially not bothering to analyze the processes that were different in nature and took place at one time or another. According to Piontkovsky, it turned out that both the Russian and the Chechen sides over the past century and a half have not shown themselves properly, and to be honest, they have done it very badly. The state in which the relations between the two peoples are, Andrey Piontkovsky assessed as "catastrophic", peace between them is impossible in principle. Why, reflecting on the future of Chechnya and Russia, the publicist concluded that a divorce was necessary. Again, without explaining why the peace and prosperity sought by the author will appear after the detachment of the republic. You just have to do it, according to Piontkovsky, and that's it. He wants it that way.
It is well known that the relationship between Russian and Chechen peoples experienced difficult times - and no one makes a secret out of this. However, Piontkovsky wrote his article exactly in the spirit of what he does greatest discovery- namely reveals the eyes of both peoples to each other and rips off the masks from both Russians and Chechens.
I don't want to give specific quotes from the article - after what our peoples have experienced, each of his maxims manages to offend either Chechens or Russians. Some quotes (without citing the source) cause a frank gag reflex. However, the article is still hanging on the Echo of Moscow website - and everyone can read it if they want to clear their stomach. Only the last two paragraphs are missing there, where it was said about the future, the separation of peoples, which is desirable directly for the author. But, by the way, to the obvious displeasure of Andrei Piontkovsky, the fact is unexpectedly stated that neither the Chechens nor the Russians will agree to a division. So he writes: not ready, de. From what is meant the conclusion about their inferiority, as it were. Wow - the mister publicist caught the wrong peoples.
dissatisfaction with Chechen and Russian leaders throughout the common history of peoples, the entire article is permeated. Apparently, because the author considers himself a publicist honest and does not want to stoop to compassionate stories. Let it be. But honesty is not the truth, much less the truth. Complex historical processes take place in conjunction with a host of accompanying, sometimes conflicting cultural, foreign policy, domestic political and religious factors. But it's all about the goal. When you have a peacekeeping goal, you are able to sift the wheat from the chaff, say: it was bad, it divided us, but it was good, it unites us and let's unite on this in the future.
Mr. Piontkovsky uses exclusively slogans taken from the rallies of extreme nationalists, both from the Chechen side and from the Russian side. His facts are rumors and obvious conjectures. “The Kremlin still lives on phantom imperial illusions,” Andrei Piontkovsky addresses one of his favorite liberal mantras to the Chechens, starting to analyze in his article foreign policy President Vladimir Putin. At the same time, for some reason, the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), which has been successfully operating for many years and is very attractive for many other states, is dismissively called by the publicist "some kind of Eurasian horde", that for the leading researcher of the Institute system analysis RAS is absolutely stupid and incompetent.
After that, Mr. Piontkovsky says that "the situation of hypocritical self-deception, humiliating for Russia, cannot remain endless." This is about bad Chechens. In his publication, the political scientist managed to push the heads of the head of the republic, and the security forces both with the president and with the leaders of Chechnya, the elites of the two peoples with these peoples themselves. Surprisingly, even the “general liberal public” and the non-systemic opposition led by Navalny got it. With Piontkovsky, everyone and everything is to blame. Logical chains of reasoning for a candidate of physical and mathematical sciences are insignificant and sophistical - they are proofs here, and Piontkovsky cannot operate with facts due to their absence.
In general, the article contains only that which serves division and, sadly enough, extremism. "A bomb ready to explode" - it is not for nothing that this article is frankly called. Piontkovsky's conclusions from the "catastrophic" situation he described, which in itself is more than a controversial thesis, are unequivocal: there will be war. It's just not clear - the war should be started either by the Russian security forces, or by the Chechens themselves, but it should be, period. Why he decided this is also unclear, because a little earlier Piontkovsky spoke about the unpreparedness of the Russians and Chechens not only to fight, but also to disperse. And if not war, then divorce. And again we go in circles.
What is extremism? Behind the terrible and numerous terrorist attacks of recent times, this word has also undergone inflation. So, in theory, extremism is “adherence to extreme views, methods of action. The most radical extremists often deny in principle any compromises, negotiations, agreements.” And in Andrei Piontkovsky's article there is a commitment to extreme views, but there are no calls for compromises, negotiations, agreements. And he could have offered something as a distinguished political scientist, since he sees problems. No - his work is unambiguous. Its goal is to bring as much confusion and vacillation as possible into the complex formation of the multinational Russian state.
In winter, the head of the State Duma Committee on Security and Anti-Corruption, Irina Yarovaya, sent a request to the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation to check for extremism an article by Andrey Piontkovsky, published on the Ekho Moskvy website. "Appeals, similar topics that we see in the publication are aimed at destroying the foundations state security, which requires a proper legal assessment and procedural conclusions, ”Irina Yarovaya then claimed. Pay attention - about the intention to apply to the Prosecutor General's Office and investigative committee The parliament of Chechnya announced to Russia on the same issue. The Prosecutor General's Office, having found signs of extremism in Piontkovsky's article, in turn handed over the materials to the FSB. And now, in July, we have witnessed the first investigative actions of the FSB. This kind of work is difficult and time consuming, but those who undermine political system and calls for extremism, they know that sooner or later they will get to them. And it doesn't matter if Andrei Piontkovsky is on the run or not. More recently, the publicist confirmed that he does not intend to return to Russia.
Bomb ready to explode
I have to repeat in many ways my last year's article "The Kadyrov Project", because it is becoming more and more ominously topical.
I will start, just as then, with the prophetic words of my teacher in politics, Dmitry Efimovich Furman, said by him in his wonderful work “The Most Difficult People for Russia”, published on the eve of the second Chechen war unleashed as part of Operation Heir.
“The deportation of Chechens in 1944 for the Chechen consciousness means approximately the same as for the Jewish - the Hitler genocide or for the Armenians - the massacre of 1915. This is a terrible trauma, the memory of this and the horror of the possibility of repeating this haunts every Chechen. And the events of the war revived this horror ...
And even if we could imagine that by some miracle, having gathered our strength, we could subjugate Chechnya and bring it into the Federation, this would only liken Russia to a person in whose body there is a time bomb, which after some time sure to explode."
Indeed, by some miracle we brought Chechnya into the Federation, but today, when the ticking of this clockwork inside the Russian body is again heard by everyone, we simply have to figure out the fate of our relations with the most difficult people for Russia.
Let's start with the miracle of how we nevertheless dragged Chechnya into the Russian Federation as a result of the second Chechen war. The creator of this miracle is Vladimir Putin, and it is called the Kadyrov project.
Why did we fight twice in Chechnya? For the territorial integrity of Russia. For Chechnya as part of Russia. But territorial integrity is not a scorched earth without people. We fought to prove to the Chechens that they are citizens of Russia. But at the same time, we destroyed their cities and villages with aviation and multiple launch rocket systems (“And in the open field, the Grad system, Putin and Stalingrad are behind us”), kidnapped civilians, whose corpses were later found with traces of torture.
We constantly proved to the Chechens just the opposite of what we proclaimed: we proved to them with all our behavior that for us they are not citizens of Russia, that we no longer consider them citizens of Russia, but their cities and villages are Russian. And they convincingly proved this not only to Chechens, but to all Caucasians. They learned well the object lessons taught to them.
Mr. Putin was very often remembered and still remembers that pretentious outhouse appeal that set the tone for the second Chechen war and determined its sad outcome for Russia. We must give Putin his due: after several years of a bloody war started for his coming to power, facing a choice between the very bad and the monstrous, the president chose the very bad.
Admitting his defeat, he gave all power in Chechnya to Kadyrov and his army and pays him an indemnity with budgetary transfers. In response, Kadyrov formally declares not so much loyalty to the Kremlin as his personal union with Putin. It would be monstrous to continue the war to exterminate the Chechen ethnos - in the shaman style, in the Budan style.
Having unleashed and lost the war in the Caucasus, the Kremlin pays in exchange for ostentatious obedience tribute-indemnity not only to Kadyrov, but also to the criminal elites of other republics. It is used to buy palaces and golden pistols for local leaders. Declassed unemployed young highlanders go to the warriors of Allah or migrate from the Caucasus to Russian cities. And in the depressive neighborhoods of Biryulyovo, a generation of children of those who absolutely and forever lost during the twenty years of "market" economic reforms has already grown up. Mentally, there is a yawning abyss between the Russian youth and the Caucasian youth, who grew up from childhood in the conditions of a brutal war, first in Chechnya, and then in the all-Caucasus.
Young Muscovites march through the city shouting “Stop feeding the Caucasus!”, while young highlanders behave defiantly and aggressively on the streets of Russian cities. They have developed a winning mentality. In their view, Moscow lost the Caucasian war and they behave accordingly in the defeated capital. In the minds and hearts of the Caucasus and Russia are rapidly moving away from each other. At the same time, neither the Kremlin nor the North Caucasian "elites" are ready for a formal separation.
The Kremlin still lives with phantom imperial illusions about vast “zones of privileged interests” far beyond the borders of Russia - either about some kind of Eurasian horde, of which Putin dreams of becoming a khan for life, or about the “Russian World” that is constantly expanding at the expense of its neighbors, or about the Syrian “Orthodox shrines." The local kings, starting with Kadyrov, do not want to refuse the tribute paid to them by Moscow.
The post-imperial campaign for "Chechnya as part of Russia" turns into a nightmare of "Russia as part of Chechnya" with a cruel mockery of fate. The situation of hypocritical self-deception, humiliating for Russia, cannot continue indefinitely. But there are no ways out of it within the framework of the ruling diarchy between Putin and Kadyrov. A simple way out was always seen by the security forces, who from the very beginning were extremely skeptical about Putin's project "Kadyrov", in their view, once again snatched "victory" from their hands. They could never come to terms with the loss of Chechnya as a zone of their feeding and, what was even more important for them, a zone of their heady power over life and death. The Kadyrov project deprived them of these two basic pleasures, and they sincerely hate Kadyrov for this.
It is striking that our broad “liberal” public does not understand the essence of the conflict between the Russian security forces and Kadyrov that emerged after the assassination of Nemtsov. You read the regular FSB leaks and you might think that the ashes of the murdered Nemtsov are knocking on the hearts of Messrs. Bortnikov or Patrushev. Their indignant mind boils, and they are ready to lead the most fundamental battle for the observance of the norms of capitalist legality. The murder of Nemtsov is not a reason for them, but an occasion for a decisive showdown with Kadyrov. Moreover, the reason, most likely, is skillfully designed by them.
Firstly, the murder on Red Square could not have been carried out without the assistance of the top leaders of the Russian special services. Secondly, the alleged perpetrator, Zaur Dadaev, deputy commander of the elite Sever detachment, would never have attacked him without Kadyrov’s order, and Kadyrov could have given such an order either at Putin’s direct request, or having received information about the leader’s desire from someone from top leaders of the state. The bloody party conceived, carried out and exploits the assassination of Nemtsov not as an end in itself, but as a detonator for the realization of their far-reaching political aspirations. Apparently, the Kadyrovites were given to understand that the order for the liquidation comes from the pope himself. It seemed so certain that they didn't doubt it for a second. The perpetrators were absolutely sure of their impunity.
The main direction of the coordinated attack of the security forces is the maximum discrediting in the public field of Kadyrov, and through him, of Putin, who patronizes him, if he refuses to leak him. But it was very difficult for Putin to hand over Kadyrov. The closure of the Kadyrov project under pressure from the security forces would be the official recognition of Russia's defeat in the second Chechen war and the announcement of a third. This is a return to 1999 in a much worse starting position. And besides, the complete political delegitimization of Putin - "the savior of the fatherland in 1999." Putin has not handed over Kadyrov yet, forcing the investigation to confine itself to some driver named as the main customer. But, it seems to me, the security forces did not completely abandon their plans.
And what did the Kadyrov project mean for Chechnya itself, and what would its closure by the security forces lead to? Under the omnipotence of the federals, any Chechen, regardless of his views or actions, could be seized by the federals, kidnapped, subjected to abuse, torture, and killed. In today's Chechnya, the same fate can befall any Chechen who opposes Kadyrov. This is a huge advance in the security of the individual. There is a fundamental difference between the status of a Jew in Hitler's Germany and a German in the same country. It was this radical change that created Kadyrov's base of support. Of course, during the years of his power, he had both enemies and bloodlines. But any attempt by the security forces to return to their former arbitrariness will unite Chechen society in fierce resistance.
A convincing and very timely indicator of the vector of those changes that the security forces are dreaming about was the murder in Grozny of Chechen Dzhambulat Dadaev by Interior Ministry officers who arrived from Stavropol. Even from the helplessly false statement of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, made after the murder, it clearly follows that the fighters did not come to detain the suspect, but to liquidate the victim. This is a routine daily practice that the security forces have resorted to for years in Chechnya and are regularly used in Dagestan and other North Caucasian republics. These liquidations are so commonplace that they are even often shown in news stories on federal channels, apparently for the purpose of patriotic education of young people. But Kadyrov stopped such safaris for the federals in Chechnya. He left this privilege only to himself. And again, the Chechens do not want to turn from Germans into Jews of the Nazi Reich. And they will resist such a prospect. With Kadyrov or without Kadyrov.
Here are some statements by various well-known Chechens, from Kadyrov to Zakayev, made after the liquidation in Grozny.
“The days of the 2000s are over. Someone wanted to "make a result" - they took the Chechen and killed him. This will not happen. Enough. We were humiliated and insulted. We did not adopt the Constitution in order to be killed.”
“In the memory of people, extrajudicial executions, illegal detentions and arrests, torture and other massive human rights violations committed by unknown people in masks on cars and unmarked APCs against local residents are still quite fresh. We have five thousand people missing. Hundreds of thousands have been killed."
“Today, the population of Chechnya will, of course, support Ramzan Kadyrov. He enjoys the loyalty of the Chechens precisely because he protects them. People link the end of the cleansings and lawlessness that took place in Chechnya to the name of Kadyrov. ".
Cleansing operations and massacres have been carried out in Chechnya on behalf of the Russian authorities for centuries. We all remember the testimony of a Russian officer, a participant in this endless Caucasian war: “The old owners gathered in the square and, squatting, discussed their position. Nobody spoke about hatred of Russians. The feeling experienced by all Chechens, young and old, was stronger than hatred. It was not hatred, but the non-recognition of these Russian dogs by people and such disgust, disgust and bewilderment at the ridiculous cruelty of these creatures that the desire to exterminate them, like the desire to exterminate rats, poisonous spiders and wolves, was the same natural feeling as the feeling of self-preservation.
I read "Hadji Murad" as a child, but only relatively recently did I understand the meaning of these terrible, unbearable words for the Russian consciousness - after the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, its investigation and the trial of the direct perpetrators. Anna, who wrote the truth about the crimes of the Russian government in Chechnya, was a saint. In heavenly Jerusalem, her place is in the Alley of the Righteous. Her lines were filled with unbearable human pain, the suffering of the torn bodies and souls of the victims. To them who died in hell, Anna returned sympathy and dignity after death. Ordered and organized her murder Russian imperious scoundrels. The killers were provided with logistical support by two operational groups of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSB. But the Chechens killed her.
And neither her murder nor the publication of the names of her killers shocked the Chechen society. It remained absolutely indifferent to the fate of Anna. It was concerned with how to hide from the court Rustam Makhmudov, who shot at Anna. It seemed to me completely incomprehensible until I finally understood a simple thing. Putin and Politkovskaya and the rest of us are largely indistinguishable for many Chechens.
Both the one and the other, like all of us, by the fact of their birth, belong in their perception to the category of those very beings for whom they feel a feeling that is stronger than hatred. Putin is just a useful giaur for them – the current boss of these creatures, with whom they have to conduct important negotiations and make deals. Bringing him the head of an insignificant journalist he hates as a gift on his birthday can be a useful tactical move for the Chechen ethnos. Same story with Nemtsov. Under the blueprint. But Nemtsov, after all, collected a million signatures in Nizhny Novgorod, brought them to the Kremlin and did a lot to stop the first Chechen war.
But after everything that the Romanovs and Yermolovs, Stalins and Yeltsins, Putins and Shamanovs did in Chechnya in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, this feeling has become so all-consuming for Chechens that they simply don’t bother trying to understand the shades of Russians anymore. Two ethnic groups with such a stable attitude towards each other cannot live in one state. The Kadyrov project, with its ticking bomb, delayed the solution of the problem for a decade, but its time has run out.
The latest crazy media performances by the Kadyrovites sharply set the majority of Russian society against them, despite the fact that the threats apply only to liberals. This plays into the hands of the security forces, who may again demand that Putin remove Kadyrov, now relying on broad public support.
Oil was added to the fire by the story of the Krasnoyarsk deputy, whom the Chechen diaspora forced to humiliatingly apologize to Kadyrov. As a result, Putin finds himself in the role of almost the only person who defends the Chechen leader, not very, to put it mildly, beloved by the Russian people.
Kadyrov is making a big mistake by exaggerating Putin's ability to keep the situation under control, since the patron has found himself in an extremely vulnerable position against the backdrop of isolation, not only external, but emerging internal, and even against the backdrop of a large-scale economic crisis. With his wild statements and threats, Kadyrov not only does not help the boss, but also increases his isolation, opposing Putin not only to the security forces and sislibs, but to the entire Russian society.
One of the leaders of the non-systemic opposition, Navalny, as you know, has already accused Kadyrov of intending to formalize the separation of Chechnya from Russia and create an Islamic state:
“Well, finally, I will repeat what I have said many times: Kadyrov’s strategic task is to separate from Russia and create his own authoritarian state under the guise of Islamic slogans. He just waits for the moment when there is absolutely no money in the budget.”
Golden words for the ears of our security officials, who have long dreamed of closing the Kadyrov project. Here it is that broad public support, on which they can rely on in unleashing the 3rd Chechen war. To prevent Kadyrov's treachery and his flight, together with the republic, from the Russian Federation, which, Vladimir Vladimirovich, has been warned many times not only by us, but also by patriotic-minded opposition leaders.
And on the same day, A. Navalny, for some reason, posts on his blog a detailed conduit “How the Chechens fought for Hitler”, pushing the reader to justify the genocide of 1944.
It is hard to get rid of the impression that Navalny is deliberately preparing his many supporters and admirers to support the security forces' plans for yet another "restoration of constitutional order." And he does this, of course, not by someone else's order, but by virtue of his fundamental convictions.
A politician who is going to lead the country does not understand that such a scenario would be a disaster not only for Chechnya, but above all for Russia.
Not about the return of Kadyrov's totalitarian offshore to our domestic Putin's "legal" field through an even more bloody third Chechen war, we must think today. And about the liberation of us from the imperial obsession, forcing the third century in a row to tear apart with shells and bombs a piece of land inhabited by a people that has not submitted to us, the most difficult for us.
Bomb ready to explode
Andrey Piontkovsky: Stop the ticking clockwork of the Russian-Chechen catastrophe
I have to largely repeat my last year's article "The Kadyrov Project", because it is becoming more and more frighteningly relevant.
I will start, just as then, with the prophetic words of my teacher in politics, Dmitry Efimovich Furman, said by him in his wonderful work "The Most Difficult People for Russia" published on the eve of the second Chechen war unleashed as part of Operation "Heir".
"The deportation of Chechens in 1944 for the Chechen consciousness means approximately the same as for the Jewish - the Nazi genocide or for the Armenians - the massacre of 1915. This is a terrible trauma, the memory of this and the horror of the possibility of repeating this haunts every Chechen. And the events of the war revived this horror...
And even if we could imagine that by some miracle, having gathered our strength, we could subjugate Chechnya and bring it into the Federation, this would only liken Russia to a person in whose body there is a time bomb, which after some time sure to explode."
Indeed, by some miracle we brought Chechnya into the Federation, but today, when the ticking of this clockwork inside the Russian body is again heard by everyone, we simply have to figure out the fate of our relations with the most difficult people for Russia.
Let's start with the miracle of how we nevertheless dragged Chechnya into the Russian Federation as a result of the second Chechen war. The creator of this miracle is Vladimir Putin, and it is called the Kadyrov project.
Why did we fight twice in Chechnya? For the territorial integrity of Russia. For Chechnya as part of Russia. But territorial integrity is not a scorched earth without people. We fought to prove to the Chechens that they are citizens of Russia. But at the same time, we destroyed their cities and villages with aviation and multiple launch rocket systems (“And in the open field, the Grad system, Putin and Stalingrad are behind us”), kidnapped civilians, whose corpses were later found with traces of torture.
We constantly proved to the Chechens just the opposite of what we proclaimed: we proved to them with all our behavior that for us they are not citizens of Russia, that we no longer consider them citizens of Russia, but their cities and villages are Russian. And they convincingly proved this not only to Chechens, but to all Caucasians. They learned well the object lessons taught to them.
Mr. Putin was very often remembered and still remembers that pretentious outhouse appeal that set the tone for the second Chechen war and determined its sad outcome for Russia. We must give Putin his due: after several years of a bloody war started for his coming to power, facing a choice between the very bad and the monstrous, the president chose the very bad.
Admitting his defeat, he gave all power in Chechnya to Kadyrov and his army and pays him an indemnity with budgetary transfers. In response, Kadyrov formally declares not so much loyalty to the Kremlin as his personal union with Putin. It would be monstrous to continue the war to exterminate the Chechen ethnic group - in a shamanic way, in a Budanov way.
Having unleashed and lost the war in the Caucasus, the Kremlin pays in exchange for ostentatious obedience tribute-indemnity not only to Kadyrov, but also to the criminal elites of other republics. It is used to buy palaces and golden pistols for local leaders. Declassed unemployed young highlanders go to the warriors of Allah or migrate from the Caucasus to Russian cities. And in the depressive neighborhoods of Biryulyovo, a generation of children of those who absolutely and forever lost during the twenty years of "market" economic reforms has already grown up. Mentally, there is a yawning abyss between the Russian youth and the Caucasian youth, who grew up from childhood in the conditions of a brutal war, first in Chechnya, and then in the all-Caucasus.
Young Muscovites march through the city shouting "Stop feeding the Caucasus!", while young highlanders behave defiantly and aggressively on the streets of Russian cities. They have developed a winning mentality. In their view, Moscow lost the Caucasian war and they behave accordingly in the defeated capital. In the minds and hearts of the Caucasus and Russia are rapidly moving away from each other. At the same time, neither the Kremlin nor the North Caucasian "elites" are ready for a formal separation.
The Kremlin still lives with phantom imperial illusions about vast "zones of privileged interests" far beyond the borders of Russia - either about some kind of Eurasian horde, of which Putin dreams of becoming a khan for life, or about the "Russian World" that is constantly expanding at the expense of its neighbors, or about the Syrian " Orthodox shrines. The local kings, starting with Kadyrov, do not want to refuse the tribute paid to them by Moscow.
The post-imperial campaign for "Chechnya as part of Russia" turns into a nightmare of "Russia as part of Chechnya" with a cruel mockery of fate. The situation of hypocritical self-deception, humiliating for Russia, cannot continue indefinitely. But there are no ways out of it within the framework of the ruling diarchy between Putin and Kadyrov. A simple way out was always seen by the security forces, who from the very beginning were extremely skeptical about Putin's Kadyrov project, which, in their view, once again snatched "victory" out of their hands. They could never come to terms with the loss of Chechnya as a zone of their feeding and, what was even more important for them, a zone of their heady power over life and death. The Kadyrov project deprived them of these two basic pleasures, and they sincerely hate Kadyrov for this.
It is striking that our broad "liberal" public does not understand the essence of the conflict that emerged after the assassination of Nemtsov between the Russian security forces and Kadyrov. You read the regular FSB leaks and you might think that the ashes of the murdered Nemtsov are knocking on the hearts of Messrs. Bortnikov or Patrushev. Their indignant mind boils, and they are ready to lead the most fundamental battle for the observance of the norms of capitalist legality. The murder of Nemtsov is not a reason for them, but an occasion for a decisive showdown with Kadyrov. Moreover, the reason, most likely, is skillfully designed by them.
Firstly, the murder on Red Square could not have been carried out without the assistance of the top leaders of the Russian special services. Secondly, the alleged executor, Zaur Dadaev, deputy commander of the Sever elite detachment, would never have attacked him without Kadyrov’s order, and Kadyrov could have given such an order either at Putin’s direct request, or having received information about the leader’s desire from someone from top leaders of the state. The bloody party conceived, carried out and exploits the assassination of Nemtsov not as an end in itself, but as a detonator for the realization of their far-reaching political aspirations. Apparently, the Kadyrovites were given to understand that the order for the liquidation comes from the pope himself. It seemed so certain that they didn't doubt it for a second. The perpetrators were absolutely sure of their impunity.
The main direction of the coordinated attack of the security forces is the maximum discrediting in the public field of Kadyrov, and through him, of Putin, who patronizes him, if he refuses to leak him. But it was very difficult for Putin to hand over Kadyrov. The closure of the Kadyrov project under pressure from the security forces would be the official recognition of Russia's defeat in the second Chechen war and the announcement of a third. This is a return to 1999 in a much worse starting position. And besides, the complete political delegitimization of Putin - "the savior of the fatherland in 1999." Putin has not handed over Kadyrov yet, forcing the investigation to confine itself to some driver named as the main customer. But, it seems to me, the security forces did not completely abandon their plans.
And what did the Kadyrov project mean for Chechnya itself, and what would its closure by the security forces lead to? Under the omnipotence of the federals, any Chechen, regardless of his views or actions, could be seized by the federals, kidnapped, subjected to abuse, torture, and killed. In today's Chechnya, the same fate can befall any Chechen who opposes Kadyrov. This is a huge advance in the security of the individual. There is a fundamental difference between the status of a Jew in Hitler's Germany and a German in the same country. It was this radical change that created Kadyrov's base of support. Of course, during the years of his power, he had both enemies and bloodlines. But any attempt by the security forces to return to their former arbitrariness will unite Chechen society in fierce resistance.
A convincing and very timely indicator of the vector of those changes that the security forces are dreaming about was the murder in Grozny of Chechen Dzhambulat Dadaev by Interior Ministry officers who arrived from Stavropol. Even from the helplessly false statement of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, made after the murder, it clearly follows that the fighters did not come to detain the suspect, but to liquidate the victim. This is a routine daily practice that the security forces have resorted to for years in Chechnya and are regularly used in Dagestan and other North Caucasian republics. These liquidations are so commonplace that they are even often shown in news stories on federal channels, apparently for the purpose of patriotic education of young people. But Kadyrov stopped such safaris for the federals in Chechnya. He left this privilege only to himself. And again, the Chechens do not want to turn from Germans into Jews of the Nazi Reich. And they will resist such a prospect. With Kadyrov or without Kadyrov.
Here are some statements by various well-known Chechens, from Kadyrov to Zakayev, made after the liquidation in Grozny.
"The days of the 2000s are over. Someone wanted to "make a result" - they took the Chechen and killed him. This will not happen. Enough. We were humiliated and insulted. We did not adopt the Constitution to be killed".
"In the memory of people, extrajudicial executions, illegal detentions and arrests, torture and other massive human rights violations committed by unknown people in masks on cars and armored personnel carriers without identification marks in relation to local residents are still quite fresh. We have five thousand people missing .Hundreds of thousands killed."
"Today, the population of Chechnya, of course, will support Ramzan Kadyrov. He enjoys the loyalty of the Chechens precisely because he protects them. People link the end of the cleansings and lawlessness that took place in Chechnya to the name of Kadyrov."
Cleansing operations and massacres have been carried out in Chechnya on behalf of the Russian authorities for centuries. We all remember the testimony of a Russian officer, a participant in this endless Caucasian war: “The old owners gathered in the square and, squatting, discussed their situation. No one spoke of hatred for the Russians. The feeling that all Chechens, young and old, felt was stronger than hatred. people and such disgust, disgust and bewilderment at the absurd cruelty of these creatures that the desire to exterminate them, like the desire to exterminate rats, poisonous spiders and wolves, was as natural a feeling as the feeling of self-preservation.
I read "Hadji Murad" as a child, but only relatively recently did I understand the meaning of these terrible words, unbearable for the Russian consciousness - after the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, its investigation and the trial of the direct perpetrators. Anna, who wrote the truth about the crimes of the Russian government in Chechnya, was a saint. In heavenly Jerusalem, her place is in the Alley of the Righteous. Her lines were filled with unbearable human pain, the suffering of the torn bodies and souls of the victims. To them who died in hell, Anna returned sympathy and dignity after death. Ordered and organized her murder Russian imperious scoundrels. The killers were provided with logistical support by two operational groups of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSB. But the Chechens killed her.
And neither her murder nor the publication of the names of her killers shocked the Chechen society. It remained absolutely indifferent to the fate of Anna. It was concerned with how to hide from the court Rustam Makhmudov, who shot at Anna. It seemed to me completely incomprehensible until I finally understood a simple thing. Putin and Politkovskaya and the rest of us are largely indistinguishable for many Chechens.
Both the one and the other, like all of us, by the fact of their birth, belong in their perception to the category of those very beings for whom they feel a feeling that is stronger than hatred. Putin is just a useful giaour for them - today's godfather of these creatures, with whom they have to conduct important negotiations and make deals. Bringing him the head of an insignificant journalist he hates as a gift on his birthday can be a useful tactical move for the Chechen ethnos. The same story with Nemtsov. Under the blueprint. But Nemtsov, after all, collected a million signatures in Nizhny Novgorod, brought them to the Kremlin and did a lot to stop the first Chechen war.
But after everything that the Romanovs and Yermolovs, Stalins and Yeltsins, Putins and Shamanovs did in Chechnya in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, this feeling has become so all-consuming for Chechens that they simply don’t bother trying to understand the shades of Russians anymore. Two ethnic groups with such a stable attitude towards each other cannot live in one state. The Kadyrov project, with its ticking bomb, delayed the solution of the problem for a decade, but its time has run out.
The latest crazy media performances by the Kadyrovites sharply set the majority of Russian society against them, despite the fact that the threats apply only to liberals. This plays into the hands of the security forces, who may again demand that Putin remove Kadyrov, now relying on broad public support.
Oil was added to the fire by the story of the Krasnoyarsk deputy, whom the Chechen diaspora forced to humiliatingly apologize to Kadyrov. As a result, Putin finds himself in the role of almost the only person who defends the Chechen leader, not very, to put it mildly, beloved by the Russian people.
Kadyrov is making a big mistake by exaggerating Putin's ability to keep the situation under control, since the patron has found himself in an extremely vulnerable position against the backdrop of isolation, not only external, but emerging internal, and even against the backdrop of a large-scale economic crisis. With his wild statements and threats, Kadyrov not only does not help the boss, but also increases his isolation, opposing Putin not only to the security forces and sislibs, but to the entire Russian society.
One of the leaders of the non-systemic opposition, Navalny, as you know, has already accused Kadyrov of intending to formalize the separation of Chechnya from Russia and create an Islamic state:
"Well, finally, I will repeat what I have said many times: Kadyrov's strategic task is to separate from Russia and create his own authoritarian state under the guise of Islamic slogans. He is simply waiting for the moment when there is absolutely no money in the budget."
Golden words for the ears of our security officials, who have long dreamed of closing the Kadyrov project. Here it is that broad public support, on which they can rely on in unleashing the 3rd Chechen war. To prevent Kadyrov's treachery and his flight, together with the republic, from the Russian Federation, which, Vladimir Vladimirovich, has been warned many times not only by us, but also by patriotic-minded opposition leaders.
And on the same day, A. Navalny, for some reason, posts a detailedconduit "How the Chechens fought for Hitler", pushing the reader to justify the genocide of 1944.
It is hard to get rid of the impression that Navalny is deliberately preparing his many supporters and admirers to support the plans of the security forces for another "restoration of constitutional order". And he does this, of course, not by someone else's order, but by virtue of his fundamental convictions.
A politician who is going to lead the country does not understand that such a scenario would be a disaster not only for Chechnya, but above all for Russia.
Not about the return of Kadyrov's totalitarian offshore to our domestic Putin's "legal" field through an even more bloody third Chechen war, we must think today. And about the liberation of us from the imperial obsession, forcing the third century in a row to tear apart with shells and bombs a piece of land inhabited by a people that has not submitted to us, the most difficult for us.
Stop ticking clockwork Russian-Chechen catastrophe is possible only by the immediate withdrawal of Chechnya from Russia, and the withdrawal of Russia from Chechnya.
The Chechen Republic must be offered full state independence with all legal implications for our bilateral interstate relations.
http://www.kasparov.ru/material.php?id=56A350CCE3593
