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The period of the second Chechen war years. Causes of the second Chechen war. As well as other works that may interest you

"Second Chechen War" - this is how the counter-terrorist operation in the North Caucasus is called. In fact, it became a continuation of the first Chechen war 1994-1996.

Causes of the war

The first Chechen war, which ended with the Khasavyurt agreements, did not bring noticeable improvements to the territory of Chechnya. The period of 1996-1999 in the unrecognized republic is generally characterized by deep criminalization of all life. The federal government has repeatedly appealed to the President of Chechnya A. Maskhadov with a proposal to provide assistance in the fight against organized crime, but did not find understanding.

Another factor influencing the situation in the region was the popular religious and political trend - Wahhabism. Supporters of Wahhabism began to establish the power of Islam in the villages - with skirmishes and shooting. In fact, in 1998 there was a sluggish Civil War in which hundreds of fighters participated. This trend in the republic was not supported by the administration, but it did not experience much opposition from the authorities either. Every day the situation became more and more aggravated.

In 1999, the militants of Basayev and Khattab tried to conduct a military operation in Dagestan, which was the main reason for starting new war. At the same time, terrorist attacks were carried out in Buynaksk, Moscow and Volgodonsk.

The course of hostilities

1999

Militant invasion of Dagestan

Attacks in Buynaksk, Moscow, Volgodonsk

Blocking the borders with Chechnya

Decree of B. Yeltsin "On measures to increase the effectiveness of counter-terrorist operations in the North Caucasus region" Russian Federation»

Federal troops entered the territory of Chechnya

The beginning of the assault on Grozny

year 2000

year 2009

When planning an invasion of the territory of Dagestan, the militants hoped for the support of the local population, but it offered them desperate resistance. The federal authorities proposed to the Chechen leadership that joint operation against Islamists in Dagestan. It was also proposed to eliminate the bases of illegal formations.

In August 1999, Chechen bandit formations were driven out of the territory of Dagestan, and their pursuit by federal troops began already on the territory of Chechnya. For a while there was a relative calm.

Maskhadov's government verbally condemned the bandits, but in reality took no action. With this in mind, Russian President Boris Yeltsin signed a decree "On measures to increase the effectiveness of counter-terrorist operations in the North Caucasus region of the Russian Federation." This decree was aimed at destroying gangs and terrorist bases in the republic. On September 23, federal aviation began the bombing of Grozny, and on September 30, troops entered the territory of Chechnya.

It should be noted that in the years after the First Chechen War, the training of the federal army increased markedly, and already in November the troops approached Grozny.

The federal government also made adjustments to its actions. Mufti of Ichkeria Akhmad Kadyrov, who condemned Wahhabism and opposed Maskhadov, went over to the side of the federal forces.

On December 26, 1999, an operation began to eliminate gangs in Grozny. The fighting continued throughout January 2000, and only on February 6 was it announced that full release cities.

Part of the militants managed to escape from Grozny, and began guerrilla war. The activity of hostilities gradually decreased, and many believed that the Chechen conflict had subsided. But in 2002-2005, the militants carried out a series of cruel and daring measures (hostage-taking at the Dubrovka Theater Center, schools in Beslan, a raid into Kabardino-Balkaria). Since then, the situation has practically stabilized.

Results of the Second Chechen War

The main result of the Second Chechen War can be considered the achieved relative calm in the Chechen Republic. An end was put to the criminal revelry that had terrorized the population for ten years. The drug trade and the slave trade were abolished. And it is very important that in the Caucasus it was not possible to realize the plans of the Islamists to create world centers of terrorist organizations.

Today, during the reign of Ramzan Kadyrov, the economic structure of the republic has practically been restored. Much has been done to eliminate the consequences of hostilities. The city of Grozny has become a symbol of the revival of the republic.

The second Chechen war had and official name- counter-terrorist operation in the North Caucasus, or CTO for short. But it is the common name that is more known and widespread. The war affected almost the entire territory of Chechnya and the adjacent regions of the North Caucasus. It began on September 30, 1999 with the entry of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The most active phase can be called the years of the second Chechen war from 1999 to 2000. This was the peak of the attacks. In subsequent years, the second Chechen war took on the character of local skirmishes between separatists and Russian soldiers. 2009 was marked by the official abolition of the CTO regime.
The second Chechen war brought a lot of destruction. The photographs taken by journalists testify to this in the best possible way.

background

The first and second Chechen wars have a small time gap. After the Khasavyurt agreement was signed in 1996, and Russian troops were withdrawn from the republic, the authorities expected calm to come. However, peace has not been established in Chechnya.
Criminal structures have significantly stepped up their activities. They did an impressive business on such a criminal act as kidnapping for ransom. Their victims were both Russian journalists and official representatives, as well as members of foreign public, political and religious organizations. The bandits did not disdain the kidnapping of people who came to Chechnya for the funeral of loved ones. So, in 1997, two citizens of Ukraine were captured, who arrived in the republic in connection with the death of their mother. Businessmen and workers from Turkey were regularly captured. Terrorists profited from the theft of oil, drug trafficking, production and distribution of counterfeit money. They committed acts of violence and kept the civilian population in fear.

In March 1999, G. Shpigun, an authorized representative of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs for Chechnya, was captured at the Grozny airport. This egregious case showed the complete inconsistency of the President of the CRI, Maskhadov. The federal center decided to strengthen control over the republic. On North Caucasus elite operational units were sent, the purpose of which was the fight against bandit formations. From the side of the Stavropol Territory, a number of rocket launchers were put up, designed to deliver pinpoint ground strikes. An economic blockade was also introduced. The flow of cash injections from Russia has sharply decreased. In addition, it has become increasingly difficult for bandits to smuggle drugs abroad and take hostages. Gasoline produced in clandestine factories had nowhere to sell. In mid-1999, the border between Chechnya and Dagestan turned into a militarized zone.

Bandit formations did not abandon attempts to unofficially seize power. Groups under the leadership of Khattab and Basayev made forays into the territory of Stavropol and Dagestan. As a result, dozens of servicemen and police officers were killed.

On September 23, 1999, Russian President Boris Yeltsin officially signed a decree on the creation of the United Group of Forces. Its goal was to conduct a counter-terrorist operation in the North Caucasus. Thus began the second Chechen war.

The nature of the conflict

The Russian Federation acted very skillfully. with the help of tactics (luring the enemy into a minefield, sudden raids on small settlements), significant results were achieved. After the active phase of the war passed, the main goal of the command was to establish a truce and attract former leaders of gangs to their side. The militants, on the contrary, relied on giving the conflict an international character, calling for participation in it of representatives of radical Islam from all over the world.

By 2005, terrorist activity had dropped significantly. Between 2005 and 2008, no major attacks on civilians or clashes with official troops were recorded. However, in 2010 there were a number of tragic terrorist acts (explosions in the Moscow metro, at Domodedovo airport).

Second Chechen War: Beginning

On June 18, CRI carried out two attacks at once on the border in the direction of Dagestan, as well as on a company of Cossacks in Stavropol. After that, most of the checkpoints to Chechnya from Russia were closed.

On June 22, 1999, an attempt was made to blow up the building of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of our country. This fact was noted for the first time in the entire history of the existence of this ministry. The bomb was located and promptly defused.

On June 30, the Russian leadership gave permission to use military weapons against gangs on the border with the CRI.

Attack on the Republic of Dagestan

On August 1, 1999, the armed detachments of the Khasavyurt region, as well as the citizens of Chechnya supporting them, announced that they were introducing Sharia rule in their region.

On August 2, militants from the CRI provoked a violent clash between Wahhabis and riot police. As a result, several people died on both sides.

On August 3, a shootout took place between policemen and Wahhabis in the Tsumadinsky district of the river. Dagestan. There were no losses. Shamil Basayev, one of the leaders of the Chechen opposition, announced the creation of an Islamic shura that had its own troops. They established control over several districts in Dagestan. The local authorities of the republic are asking the center for the issuance of military weapons to protect the civilian population from terrorists.

The next day, the separatists were driven back from the regional center of Aghvali. More than 500 people dug in in positions that had been prepared in advance. They did not put forward any demands and did not enter into negotiations. it became known that they were holding three policemen.

At noon on August 4, on the road of the Botlikh region, a group of armed militants opened fire on a line of police officers who were trying to stop a car for an inspection. As a result, two terrorists were killed, and there were no casualties among the security forces. The settlement of Kekhni was hit by two powerful missile and bomb attacks by Russian attack aircraft. It was there, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, that a detachment of militants stopped.

On August 5, it becomes known that a major terrorist act is being prepared on the territory of Dagestan. 600 militants were going to penetrate the center of the republic through the village of Kekhni. They wanted to seize Makhachkala and sabotage the government. However, representatives of the center of Dagestan denied this information.

The period from August 9 to 25 was remembered by the battle for the Donkey Ear height. The militants fought with paratroopers from Stavropol and Novorossiysk.

Between September 7 and 14, large groups invaded from Chechnya under the leadership of Basayev and Khattab. The devastating battles continued for about a month.

Bombing of Chechnya from the air

On August 25, Russian armed forces attacked terrorist bases in the Vedeno Gorge. More than a hundred militants were destroyed from the air.

In the period from 6 to 18 September, Russian aviation continues a massive bombardment of separatist gathering places. Despite the protest of the Chechen authorities, the security forces say they will act as necessary in the fight against terrorists.

On September 23, Grozny and its environs are bombarded by central aviation forces. As a result, power plants, oil refineries, a mobile communication center, radio and television buildings were destroyed.

On September 27, VV Putin rejected the possibility of a meeting between the presidents of Russia and Chechnya.

Ground operation

Since September 6, martial law has been in effect in Chechnya. Maskhadov calls on his citizens to declare gazavat to Russia.

On October 8, in the village of Mekenskaya, a militant Ibragimov Akhmed shot 34 people of Russian nationality. Of these, three were children. At the gathering of the village of Ibragimov, they beat him to death with sticks. Mulla forbade his body to be buried in the earth.

The next day they occupied a third of the CRI territory and moved on to the second phase of hostilities. The main goal is the destruction of gangs.

On November 25, the President of Chechnya appealed to Russian soldiers to surrender and go into captivity.

In December 1999 fighting forces Russia was liberated from militants almost all of Chechnya. About 3,000 terrorists dispersed over the mountains, and also hid in Grozny.

Until February 6, 2000, the siege of the capital of Chechnya continued. After the capture of Grozny, massive battles came to naught.

Situation in 2009

Despite the fact that the counter-terrorist operation was officially terminated, the situation in Chechnya did not become calmer, but, on the contrary, became aggravated. Cases of explosions became more frequent, militants became more active again. In the autumn of 2009, a number of operations were carried out aimed at the destruction of gangs. The militants respond with major terrorist acts, including in Moscow. By mid-2010, the conflict was escalating.

Second Chechen War: results

Any fighting damage both property and people. Despite the compelling reasons for the second Chechen war, the pain of the death of loved ones cannot be eased or forgotten. According to statistics, 3684 people were lost on the Russian side. 2178 representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation were killed. The FSB lost 202 of its employees. More than 15,000 people were killed among the terrorists. The number of civilians who died during the war is not exactly established. According to official figures, it is about 1000 people.

Movies and books about the war

The fighting did not leave indifferent and artists, writers, directors. Dedicated to such an event as the second Chechen war, photographs. Exhibitions are held regularly, where you can see works that reflect the destruction left after the battles.

The second Chechen war still causes a lot of controversy. The film "Purgatory", based on real events, perfectly reflects the horror of that period. The most famous books were written by A. Karasev. These are "Chechen stories" and "Traitor".

Plan
Introduction
1 Background
2 Character
3 Timeline
3.1 1999
3.1.1 Aggravation of the situation on the border with Chechnya
3.1.2 Attack on Dagestan
3.1.3 Air bombardments Chechnya
3.1.4 Start of ground operation

3.2 2000
3.3 2001
3.4 2002
3.5 2003
3.6 2004
3.7 2005
3.8 2006
3.9 2007
3.10 2008
3.11 2009

4 Aggravation of the situation in the North Caucasus in 2009
5 Command
6 Victims
7 Conflict in art, cinema, music
7.1 Movies and series
7.2 Songs and music

Bibliography
Second Chechen War

Introduction

The second Chechen war (officially called the counter-terrorist operation (CTO) - military operations on the territory of Chechnya and the border regions of the North Caucasus. It began on September 30, 1999 (the date of the entry of Russian troops into Chechnya). The active phase of hostilities lasted from 1999 to 2000, then, as control is established armed forces Russia over the territory of Chechnya, has grown into a smoldering conflict, which actually continues to this day. From 00:00 on April 16, 2009, the CTO regime was canceled.

1. Background

After the signing of the Khasavyurt Accords and the withdrawal of Russian troops in 1996, there was no peace and tranquility in Chechnya and its adjacent regions.

Chechen criminal structures, with impunity, did business on mass kidnappings, hostage-taking (including official Russian representatives working in Chechnya), theft of oil from oil pipelines and oil wells, the production and smuggling of drugs, the production and distribution of counterfeit banknotes, terrorist attacks and attacks on neighboring Russian regions. On the territory of Chechnya, camps were set up for the training of militants - young people from the Muslim regions of Russia. Mine-blasting instructors and Islamic preachers were sent here from abroad. Numerous Arab mercenaries began to play a significant role in the life of Chechnya. Their main goal was to destabilize the situation in the Russian regions neighboring Chechnya and spread the ideas of separatism to the North Caucasian republics (primarily Dagestan, Karachay-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria).

In early March 1999, Gennady Shpigun, the plenipotentiary representative of the Russian Interior Ministry in Chechnya, was abducted by terrorists at the Grozny airport. For the Russian leadership, this was evidence that CRI President Maskhadov was not in a position to fight terrorism on his own. The federal center took measures to intensify the fight against Chechen gangs: self-defense units were armed and police units were reinforced along the entire perimeter of Chechnya, the best operatives of units to combat ethnic organized crime were sent to the North Caucasus, several Tochka-U rocket launchers were deployed from the Stavropol Territory. ", designed for delivering pinpoint strikes. An economic blockade of Chechnya was introduced, which led to the fact that the cash flow from Russia began to dry up sharply. Due to the tightening of the regime at the border, it has become increasingly difficult to smuggle drugs into Russia and take hostages. Gasoline produced at clandestine factories has become impossible to take out of Chechnya. The fight against the Chechens was also intensified. criminal gangs who actively financed the militants in Chechnya. In May-July 1999, the Chechen-Dagestan border turned into a militarized zone. As a result, the incomes of Chechen warlords were sharply reduced and they had problems with the purchase of weapons and payment of mercenaries. In April 1999, Vyacheslav Ovchinnikov, who successfully led a number of operations during the First Chechen War, was appointed commander-in-chief of the internal troops. In May 1999, Russian helicopters launched a missile attack on the positions of Khattab militants on the Terek River in response to an attempt by gangs to seize an outpost of internal troops on the Chechen-Dagestan border. After that, Interior Minister Vladimir Rushailo announced the preparation of large-scale preventive strikes.

Meanwhile, Chechen gangs under the command of Shamil Basayev and Khattab were preparing for an armed invasion of Dagestan. From April to August 1999, conducting reconnaissance in combat, they made more than 30 sorties in Stavropol and Dagestan alone, as a result of which several dozen military personnel, law enforcement officers and civilians were killed and injured. Realizing that the strongest groupings of federal troops were concentrated in the Kizlyar and Khasavyurt directions, the militants decided to strike at the mountainous part of Dagestan. When choosing this direction, the bandit formations proceeded from the fact that there are no troops there, and it will not be possible to transfer forces to this hard-to-reach area in the shortest possible time. In addition, the militants counted on a possible blow to the rear of the federal forces from the Kadar zone of Dagestan, which since August 1998 has been controlled by local Wahhabis.

As the researchers note, the destabilization of the situation in the North Caucasus was beneficial to many. First of all, Islamic fundamentalists seeking to spread their influence throughout the world, as well as Arab oil sheikhs and financial oligarchs of the Persian Gulf countries, who are not interested in starting the exploitation of oil and gas fields in the Caspian.

On August 7, 1999, a massive invasion of militants into Dagestan was carried out from the territory of Chechnya under the overall command of Shamil Basayev and the Arab mercenary Khattab. The core of the militant group was made up of foreign mercenaries and fighters of the Islamic International Peacekeeping Brigade associated with al-Qaeda. The plan of the militants to transfer the population of Dagestan to their side failed, the Dagestanis put up desperate resistance to the invading bandits. The Russian authorities offered the Ichkerian leadership to conduct a joint operation with the federal forces against the Islamists in Dagestan. It was also proposed to "resolve the issue of liquidating the bases, places of storage and recreation of illegal armed groups, from which the Chechen leadership in every possible way disowns." Aslan Maskhadov verbally condemned the attacks on Dagestan and their organizers and inspirers, but did not take real measures to counter them.

For more than a month there were battles between the federal forces and the invading militants, which ended with the fact that the militants were forced to retreat from the territory of Dagestan back to Chechnya. On the same days - September 4-16 - in several Russian cities (Moscow, Volgodonsk and Buynaksk) a series of terrorist acts were carried out - explosions of residential buildings.

Considering Maskhadov's inability to control the situation in Chechnya, the Russian leadership decided to conduct a military operation to destroy the militants in Chechnya. On September 18, the borders of Chechnya were blocked Russian troops.

On September 23, Russian President Boris Yeltsin signed a decree "On Measures to Increase the Efficiency of Counter-Terrorist Operations in the North Caucasus Region of the Russian Federation." The decree provided for the creation of the United Group of Forces in the North Caucasus to conduct a counter-terrorist operation.

On September 23, Russian troops began a massive bombardment of Grozny and its environs, on September 30 they entered the territory of Chechnya.

2. Character

Having broken the resistance of the militants by the force of the troops of the army and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (the command of the Russian troops successfully uses military tricks, such as, for example, luring militants into minefields, raids on the rear of gangs, and many others), the Kremlin relied on the "Chechenization" of the conflict and poaching side of the elite and former militants. So, in 2000, a former supporter of the separatists, the chief mufti of Chechnya, Akhmat Kadyrov, became the head of the pro-Kremlin administration of Chechnya in 2000. The militants, on the contrary, relied on the internationalization of the conflict, involving armed detachments of non-Chechen origin in their struggle. By the beginning of 2005, after the destruction of Maskhadov, Khattab, Baraev, Abu al-Walid and many other field commanders, the intensity of the sabotage and terrorist activities of the militants had significantly decreased. During 2005-2008, not a single major terrorist attack was committed in Russia, and the only large-scale operation of militants (Raid on Kabardino-Balkaria on October 13, 2005) ended in complete failure.

3. Chronology

Aggravation of the situation on the border with Chechnya

· June 18 - from Chechnya, attacks were made on 2 outposts on the Dagestan-Chechen border, as well as an attack on a Cossack company in the Stavropol Territory. The Russian leadership closes most of the checkpoints on the border with Chechnya.

· June 22 - for the first time in the history of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, an attempt was made to commit a terrorist attack in its main building. The bomb was defused in time. According to one version, the attack was a response of Chechen fighters to the threats of Russian Interior Minister Vladimir Rushailo to carry out retaliatory actions in Chechnya.

· June 23 - shelling from Chechnya of the outpost near the village of Pervomayskoye, Khasavyurt district of Dagestan.

June 30 - Rushailo said: “We must respond to the blow with a more crushing blow; on the border with Chechnya, a command was given to use preventive strikes against armed gangs.

· July 3 - Rushailo announced that the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation "starts to strictly regulate the situation in the North Caucasus, where Chechnya acts as a criminal" think tank "controlled by foreign intelligence services, extremist organizations and the criminal community." Kazbek Makhashev, Deputy Prime Minister of the CRI government, said in response: "We cannot be intimidated by threats, and Rushailo is well known."

· July 5 - Rushailo said that "in the early morning of July 5, a preemptive strike was carried out on concentrations of 150-200 armed militants in Chechnya."

· July 7 - a group of militants from Chechnya attacked an outpost near the Grebensky bridge in the Babayurtovsky district of Dagestan. Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation and Director of the FSB of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin said that "Russia will henceforth take not preventive, but only adequate actions in response to attacks in the areas bordering Chechnya." He stressed that "the Chechen authorities do not fully control the situation in the republic."

The article tells briefly about the second Chechen war - Russia's military operation on the territory of Chechnya, which began in September 1999. Large-scale hostilities went on until 2000, after which the operation moved into a relatively calm phase, consisting in the elimination of individual bases and terrorist detachments. The operation was officially canceled in 2009.

  1. The course of the second Chechen war
  2. The results of the second Chechen war

Causes of the second Chechen war

  • After the withdrawal of Russian troops from Chechnya in 1996, the situation in the region remained unsettled. A. Maskhadov, the head of the republic, did not control the actions of the militants, and often turned a blind eye to their activities. The slave trade flourished in the republic. In the Chechen and neighboring republics, Russian and Foreign citizens for which the militants demanded a ransom. Those hostages who for some reason could not pay the ransom were subject to the death penalty.
  • The militants were actively engaged in thefts from the pipeline passing through the territory of Chechnya. The sale of oil, as well as the underground production of gasoline, has become a significant source of income for the militants. The territory of the republic has become a transshipment base for the drug trade.
  • The difficult economic situation, the lack of jobs forced the male population of Chechnya to go over to the side of the militants in search of work. A network of bases for the training of militants was created in Chechnya. The training was led by Arab mercenaries. Chechnya occupied a huge place in the plans of Islamic fundamentalists. She was assigned the main role in destabilizing the situation in the region. The republic was supposed to become a springboard for an attack on Russia and a breeding ground for separatism in neighboring republics.
  • The Russian authorities were concerned about the increasing number of kidnappings, the supply of illegal drugs and gasoline from Chechnya. Great importance had an oil Chechen pipeline, which was intended for large-scale transportation of oil from the Caspian region.
  • In the spring of 1999, a number of tough measures were taken to improve the situation and stop the activities of the militants. Chechen self-defense detachments have significantly increased. Arrived from Russia the best specialists for counter-terrorism activities. The Chechen-Dagestan border has become a de facto militarized zone. Conditions and requirements for crossing the border have been significantly increased. On the territory of Russia, the struggle by Chechen groups that finance terrorists has intensified.
  • This dealt a serious blow to the income of the militants from the sale of drugs and oil. They had problems with paying Arab mercenaries and buying weapons.

The course of the second Chechen war

  • Back in the spring of 1999, in connection with the aggravation of the situation, Russia launched a helicopter missile attack on the positions of militants on the river. Terek. According to reports, they were preparing a large-scale offensive.
  • In the summer of 1999, a number of preparatory attacks by militants were made in Dagestan. As a result, the most vulnerabilities in Russian defense positions. In August, the main forces of militants invaded the territory of Dagestan under the leadership of Sh. Basaev and Khattab. The main striking force was the Arab mercenaries. The inhabitants resisted stubbornly. The terrorists could not resist the many times superior to them Russian army. After several battles, they were forced to retreat back. K ser. September, the borders of the republic were surrounded by the Russian army. At the end of the month, Grozny and its environs are bombed, after which the Russian army enters the territory of Chechnya.
  • Russia's further actions are to fight the remnants of gangs on the territory of the republic, with an emphasis on attracting the local population. A broad amnesty is announced for participants in the terrorist movement. The head of the republic becomes a former enemy - A. Kadyrov, who creates combat-ready self-defense units.
  • In order to improve the economic situation, large financial flows were sent to Chechnya. This was to stop the recruitment of the poor by terrorists. Russia's actions have led to some success. In 2009, the termination of the counter-terrorist operation was announced.

The results of the second Chechen war

  • As a result of the war, relative calm was finally achieved in the Chechen Republic. It was almost completely finished with the drug trade and the slave trade. The plans of the Islamists to turn the North Caucasus into one of the world centers of the terrorist movement were frustrated.

On September 30, 1999, the first units of the Russian army entered the territory of Chechnya. The second Chechen war or - officially - the counter-terrorist operation - lasted almost ten years, from 1999 to 2009. It was preceded by an attack by militants Shamil Basayev and Khattab on Dagestan and a series of terrorist attacks in Buynaksk, Volgodonsk and Moscow that took place from 4 to 16 September 1999.


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Russia was shocked by a series of monstrous terrorist attacks in 1999. On the night of September 4, a house in the military town of Buynaksk (Dagestan) was blown up. 64 people were killed and 146 were injured. By itself, this terrible crime could not stir up the country, such precedents in the North Caucasus have already become commonplace for last years. But further developments showed that now the inhabitants of not a single Russian city, including the capital, can feel completely safe. The next explosions thundered already in Moscow. On the night of September 9-10 and September 13 (at 5 o'clock in the morning), 2 apartment buildings located on the street took off into the air along with sleeping residents. Guryanov (109 people died, more than 200 were injured) and on Kashirskoye Highway (more than 124 people died). Another explosion occurred in the center of Volgodonsk ( Rostov region), here 17 people died, 310 were injured and injured. According to the official version, the attacks were carried out by terrorists trained in the Khattab sabotage camps in Chechnya.

These events dramatically changed the mood in society. The inhabitant, faced with an unprecedented threat, was ready to support any forceful actions against the seceded republic. Unfortunately, few paid attention to the fact that the terrorist attacks themselves became an indicator of the biggest failure of the Russian special services, which failed to prevent them. In addition, it is difficult to completely exclude the version of involvement in the explosions of the FSB, especially after the mysterious events in Ryazan. Here, on the evening of September 22, 1999, bags with RDX and a detonator were found in the basement of one of the houses. On September 24, two suspects were detained by local Chekists, and it turned out that they were acting FSB officers from Moscow. Lubyanka urgently announced "anti-terrorist exercises that were taking place," and subsequent attempts to independently investigate these events were suppressed by the authorities.

Regardless of who was behind the massacre that occurred Russian citizens, the Kremlin used the events to the full extent. Now it was no longer about the defense of Russian territory proper in the North Caucasus, and not even about the blockade of Chechnya, reinforced by the bombardments that had already begun. The Russian leadership, with some delay, began to implement the plan prepared back in March 1999 for another invasion of the "rebellious republic".

On October 1, 1999, federal forces entered the territory of the republic. The northern regions (Naursky, Shelkovskaya and Nadterechny) were occupied practically without a fight. The Russian leadership decided not to stop at the Terek (as originally planned), but to continue the offensive along the flat part of Chechnya. At this stage, in order to avoid major losses (which could bring down the rating of Yeltsin's "successor"), the main stake was placed on the use of heavy weapons, which allowed the federal forces to avoid contact battles. In addition to this, the Russian command used the tactic of negotiations with local elders and field commanders. From the first they sought the departure of Chechen detachments from settlements, threatening, otherwise, with massive air and artillery strikes. The second was offered to go over to the side of Russia and fight the Wahhabis together. In some places this tactic has been successful. On November 12, the commander of the Vostok group, General G. Troshev, occupied Gudermes, the second largest city in the republic, without a fight, the local field commanders, the Yamadayev brothers (two out of three), went over to the side of the federal forces. And V. Shamanov, who commanded the West grouping, preferred forceful methods of resolving problems that arose. So the village of Bamut was completely destroyed as a result of the November assault, but the regional center Achkhoy-Martan was occupied by Russian units without a fight.

The "carrot and stick" method used by the federal group worked flawlessly for another reason. In the flat part of the republic, the possibilities of defense for the Chechen army were extremely limited. Sh. Basayev, was well aware of the advantage of the Russian side in firepower. In this regard, he defended the option of withdrawing the Chechen army to the southern mountainous regions of the republic. Here, the federal forces, deprived of the support of armored vehicles and limited in the use of aviation, would inevitably face the prospect of contact battles, which the Russian command stubbornly tried to avoid. The Chechen President A. Maskhadov was the opponent of this plan. While continuing to call on the Kremlin for peace talks, he was unwilling at the same time to surrender the republic's capital without a fight. Being an idealist, A. Maskhadov believed that large one-time losses during the storming of Grozny would force the Russian leadership to start peace negotiations.

In the first half of December, federal forces occupied almost the entire flat part of the republic. Chechen detachments concentrated in mountainous areas, but a rather large garrison continued to hold Grozny, which was captured by Russian troops in early 2000 in the course of stubborn and bloody battles. This ended the active phase of the war. The following years, Russian special forces, together with local loyal forces, were engaged in cleaning up the territories of Chechnya and Dagestan from the remaining gangs of formations.

The problem of the status of the Chechen Republic by 2003-2004. leaves the current political agenda: the republic returns to the political and legal space of Russia, takes its position as a subject of the Russian Federation, with elected authorities and a procedurally approved republican Constitution. Doubts about the legal validity of these procedures can hardly seriously change their results, which depend to a decisive extent on the ability of the federal and republican authorities to ensure the irreversibility of Chechnya's transition to the problems and concerns of civilian life. Two serious threats remain within this transition: (a) indiscriminate violence by the federal forces, re-binding the sympathies of the Chechen population to terrorist resistance cells/practices and thus reinforcing the dangerous “occupation effect” – the effect of alienation between [Russia] and [ Chechens] as “parties to the conflict”; and (b) the formation of a closed authoritarian regime in the republic, legitimized and protected by federal authorities and alienated from broad strata/territorial or teip groups of the Chechen population. These two threats are capable of cultivating the ground in Chechnya for the return of mass illusions and actions related to the separation of the republic from Russia.

Mufti of Chechnya Akhmat Kadyrov, who died on May 9, 2004 as a result of a terrorist attack, becomes the head of the republic, who went over to the side of Russia. His successor was his son, Ramzan Kadyrov.

Gradually, with the cessation of foreign funding and the death of the leaders of the underground, the activity of the militants decreased. The federal center has sent and is sending large sums of money to help and restore peaceful life in Chechnya. In Chechnya, units of the Ministry of Defense and internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are stationed on a permanent basis, maintaining order in the republic. Whether the troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs will remain in Chechnya after the abolition of the KTO is not yet clear.

Assessing the current situation, we can say that the fight against separatism in Chechnya has been successfully completed. However, the victory cannot be called final. The North Caucasus is a rather turbulent region, in which various forces, both local and supported from abroad, are operating, seeking to fan the fire of a new conflict, so the final stabilization of the situation in the region is still far away.

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