What does the future hold?

Recent elections in Chechnya were criticised by foreign observers for being neither free nor fair—in December 2007 the United Russia party won 99% of the vote. The current president of the Chechen Republic is the young, bullish and bearded Ramzan Kadyrov, who is backed by Putin and has a reputation for his tough stance against rebels. He is the son of the first president of the Russian-backed republic, Akhmad Kadyrov, who was assassinated in 2004 after only seven months in office. From 2000-9 fighting continued sporadically between rebel insurgents and the Kadyrovtsy, a militia loyal to both Kadyrovs that has been widely accused of kidnappings, torture and human rights abuses. With an administration loyal to Russia now in charge, the rebels are contained at the time of writing—Russia’s ‘counter-terrorism operation’ against the separatists officially came to an end in April 2009—but uncertainty remains over the long-term stability of the region.

‘The people have already determined Chechnya’s status at the referendum—it is a unit of the Russian Federation. Its political status is not to be discussed any more.’

AKHMAD KADYROV, August 2003