War with no end

It is already six years that Russia experiences one of its greatest human tragedies – war in Chechnya.

Yeltsin’s fatal mistake
Like everything else originated in this world, all started with a word. Yeltsin’s impulsive phrase in the beginning of 1990-s: «Take as much independence as you can», has provoked, already in several years, something unpredictable for Russian Federation: one of its smallest parts – Chechen Republic – «took» so much of this independence that the «big brother» suddenly didn’t know what to do.
Chechnya declared itself independent and announced of secession from Russian Federation.
Russia, naturally, couldn’t and didn’t accept this independence: it was clear that if to let Chechnya go, other federal subjects would follow suit, and Russia would cease to exist as a state. Besides, Chechnya’s decision was in conflict with Russian Constitution, and that meant that any head of state who would support it should be immediately dismissed from its position…
Republic Ichkeria, as Chechnya started to call itself, stopped obeying Russian law. But corrupt Moscow put up with this unilateral independence for three years. Actually the situation based on semi-criminal business, when from Chechnya located on the oil strata, oil-dollars were pumped out to unknown destination, while billions of Rubles designed for Chechnya’s development immediately disappeared in the pockets of 5-7 people, was quite profitable. But suddenly something went wrong in the relationship between Russian leaders and Chechen ruling clique and Kremlin decided to punish rebellious upstart.
«We’ll sort out the Chechens just with one battalion»,- boasted then Minister of Defense Pavel Grachev. Thus in December 1994, started the war that still isn’t finished today.

People can’t be defeated
They love ill-fated ones in Russia. Therefore the sympathies were soon clearly defined: the Chechen president Dudayev who was steadily losing his prestige, suddenly became a national hero, his son who was fighting among the rebels and died from wounds, gave the general Dudayev the halo of martyr, and Chechen people swore on Koran to defend the liberty with blood, thus having won the sympathies of the Muslims from former Soviet Union and all over the world. Was that what Moscow wanted when instigated “a walk in the Caucasus” for its soldiers?
Fighting nation can’t be defeated. Such it was in Afghanistan, such it turned out in Chechnya. Besides, these days the sympathies of Russian and world public were clearly on the side of this tiny republic, that opposed the colossus of Great Empire, even if not by very civilized methods. Shells were bursting, and people were dying by thousands. But federal troops, though many times outnumbering the Chechens, were powerless; two years later they were ignominiously removed, and the Chechens, although not having obtained the desired independence, got a respite…
When four years ago the last Russian soldier at last left Chechnya, very many wanted to believe that the terrible and incomprehensible Chechen war was over at last. That with the leave of Russian troops peace and accord will rule here. So it seemed then…

Source of income – slave trade!
Alas, that was self-delusion. The war continued. But now - in Russia. First the borders were on fire. Then in the streets of Moscow, St.Petersburg and other Russian cities roared machine-guns, burst explosions – Chechen drug mafia started redistribution its spheres of influence. Slave trade, multimillion financial machination and forging of US dollars became the most important source of Chechen income. Directly from Moscow apartments, let alone from frontier regions, rebels began to kidnap the hostages. During that time on the territory of Chechnya that didn’t learn to live peaceful life, operated at least 60 gangs specializing in kidnapping, and in the underground prisons that existed almost in every single house, 4 to 6 thousands unfortunate prisoners were awaiting release.
And then, in August 1999, Chechen rebels came to Russia themselves. Five thousand-people corps of Basaev and Khattab fighters decided to make the neighboring Dagestan, another subject of Russian Federation bordering upon Chechnya, a bulwark of Orthodox Islam. Thousands of refugees invaded Russia, thousand of people running away from Russian reciprocal bombing as well as from their own fellow-tribesmen Wahabis. In the regions on the border of Chechnya hundreds of thousands people found themselves without shelter, with no food. It looked like beginning of humanitarian catastrophe…
Russia couldn’t tolerate any more these bandits’ attacks, unparalleled in their cynicism and cruelty. All the more, that a young and ambitious upshot of secret services Vladimir Putin was declared a Yeltsin’s successor and came to power. It was decided from now on to talk with the terrorists in their own language – language of weapon and aviation bombs. This contributed very much to Putin’s prestige in the eyes of Russians and became one of the leading factors in his winning presidential elections.
Thus happened what was to happen: Second Chechen war began.

Night terror
But in the second Chechen war everything looked different in principle than it was in 1994-1996. Then the offensive party was Federal troops, now it was Moscow that repulsed the bandits who attacked Dagestan. Then numerous civilian victims of Russian troops activity couldn’t be compared with pre-war lawlessness of Dudayev. Now Moscow raised against the bandits responsible for death of thousands people.
And here happens something that the rebels didn’t expect at all: public opinion regarding them and the Chechen war suddenly changed. And the reason for was fear that took up the residence at home of every Russian…
Terrorism couldn’t be prevented. If a house won’t be exploded, then the bus will, or metro station. This truth was confirmed by the monstrous atrocities of September explosions. Almost 420 people, mostly peacefully sleeping in their beds old people and children, died only in two explosions in Moscow. 42 buildings or 4601 apartments were destroyed in a night explosion in Volgodonsk…
Other explosions were being prepared; during several days following Moscow events more than 13 tons explosives ready to be applied was found.
The splinter of the shocking terrorist actions scattered all over Russia. Another similar explosion and the mass hysteria would have started… And only joint efforts by the police, army and… citizens themselves who introduced round the clock watch in the buildings lobbies the panic was suppressed.
The investigation showed that the tracks of the crime pointed to Chechnya…
Maybe the terrorists wanted to use this way to force Russia to let Chechnya go. Or it was their answer to bombing Chechen villages and death of innocent population? Maybe they kill those Russians that do not have anything to do with the war in Chechnya on purpose, in order that those who survived would rise against authorities and made them to remove troops from Caucasus?
Four years ago the majority of Russians were outraged by the Moscow operation in Chechnya, and demanded peace with the rebels. Today, being desperate and not willing to become victims of the next terrorist act they supported all the most strong measures of their new president: no negotiations with the terrorists and bandits, they should be destroyed…

Closed circle
The only lesson of history is that history doesn’t teach anything anyone. ”Triumphant” ending of the second stage of Chechnya war proclaimed by the generals this spring, came to the fact that the war still continues. Only it transformed into its new stage, much more protracted and cruel. As before, explosions and shots ring out on the roads and the mountain villages, only the war, from Chechen side, has long ago became a partisan one. The tactics of the rebels is not extremely new; during the daytime law-abiding villager would plough his land on the peaceful tractor and pasture cattle, and during the night he would become an uncompromising fighter. The location for the partisan war in Chechnya are practically ideal; in the numerous shelters created by nature itself even just one fighter can oppose the platoon, and sometimes a company.
The war practically split today’s Chechen population into two camps: one fights in the mountains, the other one – women, old people and children – is trying to survive somehow. Innocent people are really tired of nightmares of devastation, hardships and death that pester them already for six years, having affected practically every Chechen family. Examples are known, when totally desperate, they refused supporting the rebels, being scared of the possible vengeance of federal troops.
And they had a lot to be afraid of. Enraged by the brutality of the rebels (slashing throats and beheading Russian captive soldiers are usual «pastime» of Chechen Wahabis), by the stupidity of their commanders, by unsettled field life and regular delays of salary payment, federal troops sometimes vent their anger on these peaceful innocent Chechens, accusing them of supporting the bandits. The Chechens, in their turn, pay them out with similar hatred, replenishing thinning ranks of rebels…
Is there any way out of this closed circle?

What to do?
The idea of negotiations with Chechen government was already realized, with results being the Khasavyurt agreements, that brought the end of so called «first Chechen war». But the ink hadn’t dried yet on the agreement signatures, as rebel’s aggression against Dagestan nullified them. Today the nominal president of Chechnya Moskhadov is not able to meet the terms of negotiations offered by Moscow that include extradition of terrorists (they are more powerful than Moskhadov), and Moscow cannot accept him as a partner in negotiations without fulfilment of this simple demand.
Also there is no possibility to block Chechnya from every side; this is unfeasible in technical terms and unrealizable financially.
But something has to be done. The war destroyed practically whole Chechen economy, razed to the ground large city Grozny and hundreds of local villages. Every new day of the war sucks millions of dollars out of meager enough Russian budget. But the most terrible thing is that tens of thousands soldiers and civilians from both sides became the victims of it, and these numbers continue to increase…
And more than that; present Chechen crisis lead to the situation where the main focus of confrontation between Muslim and Orthodox Christians had finally moved from Bosnia to Russia. And open support of the Chechen rebels by the “terrorist No.1” Usama Bin Laden and mercenaries from the entire Arab world made Chechnya one of the centers and bases of international terrorism. Millions of dollars are invested into Chechen war. And not by Russia that simply doesn’t have such money. Military campaign on North Caucasus is generously financed by Islamic world.
According to Kremlin politicians, there is only one solution: the terrorists could be destroyed, only by having destroyed them in their own bases; while they are intact, they would always find the way in the mountains and then will appear in the most unexpected places.
Simultaneously, normal everyday life should be stabilized…
However, this is hardly possible, as as far as a Chechen fighter dies, his young brother will immediately go to the mountains to replace him, according to the law of blood vengeance, and their growing children from the early days hate everything connected with Russia. Thus the conclusion: Russian army is doomed to long years of positional war with numerous victims and unbearable financial expenditures. And this will end by the inevitable withdrawal from Chechnya, same way as Americans withdrew from Vietnam, and USSR withdrew from Afghanistan. It is possible to win only if to exterminate all the participants of partisan war. That is, in this case, all the Chechens…
Still no success with returning to normal, peaceful life. Because the new Chechen leaders appointed by Moscow to restore this new life – head of provisional administration of Chechnya Akhmad Kadyrov and his deputy Bislan Gantamirov in their fight for power have almost put that part of Chechnya which is under control of Russia, on the verge of civil war…
But still there must be some way out of this war, because the bloodshed should be stopped sooner or later. More often the politicians incline to think that it should be negotiations with those of fighters who didn’t stain themselves with the blood of Russian soldiers (do such fighters exist?), in conjunction with consequent extermination and ousting from the Chechen territory the most uncompromising ones. Simultaneously the contacts with the elders that enjoy incontestable authority among the Chechens should be maintained. And, in the end, to provide to Chechen as much independence and liberty as it is possible within the frames of Russian constitution…
Time will show…