Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Notes on the Contributors
- Map 1 Chechnya
- Map 2 The Caucasus region
- 1 Introduction: Why Chechnya?
- 2 Chechnya in Russia and Russia in Chechnya
- 3 Chechnya and Tatarstan: Differences in Search of an Explanation
- 4 The Chechen War in the Context of Contemporary Russian Politics
- 5 A Multitude of Evils: Mythology and Political Failure in Chechnya
- 6 Chechnya and the Russian Military: A War Too Far?
- 7 The Chechen Wars and the Struggle for Human Rights
- 8 Dynamics of a Society at War: Ethnographical Aspects
- 9 Chechnya: The Breaking Point
- 10 Globalisation, ‘New Wars’, and the War in Chechnya
- 11 Western Views of the Chechen Conflict
- 12 A War by Any Other Name: Chechnya, 11 September and the War Against Terrorism
- 13 The Peace Process in Chechnya
- Afterword
- Appendix 1 The Khasavyurt Peace Agreement
- Appendix 2 Treaty on Peace and the Principles of Mutual Relations between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
- Further Reading
6 - Chechnya and the Russian Military: A War Too Far?
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 March 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Notes on the Contributors
- Map 1 Chechnya
- Map 2 The Caucasus region
- 1 Introduction: Why Chechnya?
- 2 Chechnya in Russia and Russia in Chechnya
- 3 Chechnya and Tatarstan: Differences in Search of an Explanation
- 4 The Chechen War in the Context of Contemporary Russian Politics
- 5 A Multitude of Evils: Mythology and Political Failure in Chechnya
- 6 Chechnya and the Russian Military: A War Too Far?
- 7 The Chechen Wars and the Struggle for Human Rights
- 8 Dynamics of a Society at War: Ethnographical Aspects
- 9 Chechnya: The Breaking Point
- 10 Globalisation, ‘New Wars’, and the War in Chechnya
- 11 Western Views of the Chechen Conflict
- 12 A War by Any Other Name: Chechnya, 11 September and the War Against Terrorism
- 13 The Peace Process in Chechnya
- Afterword
- Appendix 1 The Khasavyurt Peace Agreement
- Appendix 2 Treaty on Peace and the Principles of Mutual Relations between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
- Further Reading
Summary
The second Chechen war, launched by Russia's leadership in autumn 1999, was intended to be a breakthrough in the revival of the Russian Army. Vladimir Putin, hand-picked by President Yeltsin as the successor, was generous with promises to make Russia proud again in its military might and to give the Armed Forces every support they needed for achieving the victory. Four years later, heading towards the well-prepared re-election in March 2004, Putin assiduously avoided the topic of the deadlocked war and insisted that there was no need for further military reform, since the Army was perfectly capable of performing its duties. For any unbiased observer, however, no amount of PR spin could hide the fact that the victory had not taken place, and the presidential denial of the Army's continuing degradation was not made any more convincing by the supporting roar from the top brass.
The war in Chechnya can rightly be seen as the ‘original sin’ of Putin's regime, determining such authoritarian features as closeted decision-making, obsession with control over every source of power and rigid censorship of the media. At the same time, this war necessitates the building up of conventional military capabilities, both for suppressing the resistance and for engaging in other conflicts of this type. The maturing ‘patriotic’ ideology of the state-centric regime also places a heavy emphasis on the ability to project power as the ultimate argument in relentless geopolitical contests.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- ChechnyaFrom Past to Future, pp. 117 - 130Publisher: Anthem PressPrint publication year: 2005
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