A Fight For Independence : Analyzing The First Chechen War

Next, in Chechnya, following along the same lines of political conflicts as Xinjiang, just with a dose of economic and cultural for good measure, the revolution was brought about by the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. After the fall of the USSR and Russia losing its status as a world superpower, Chechnya tried to abandon ship, so to speak. They failed in securing their sovereignty, and in attempting it, caused both

Each dictator wanted to create “perfect” nations. The leader of Chechnya, Mr. Kadyrov, threatens those who disobey the authorities. According to an article in the New York Times, they were

In 1991 the Soviet Union collapsed into fifteen different countries. It changed the world geopolitical balance. Their fall ended the ownership of a superpowers with the resources of more than a ten countries. The collapse left Russia unable to own anything like the global influence that they had for many years. Before the Soviet Union collapsed representatives of eleven Soviet republics from Ukraine, the Russian Federation, Belarus, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan met and stated that they would no longer be part of the Soviet Union. Instead, they announced they will create a Commonwealth of Independent States. They did it because Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania had already stated their independence.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Chechen-Ingush ASSR was split into two parts: the Republic of Ingushetia and the Chechen Republic. The latter proclaimed the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, which sought independence. Following the First Chechen War with Russia, Chechnya gained de facto independence as the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. Russian federal control was restored during the Second Chechen War. Since then there has been a systematic reconstruction and rebuilding process, though sporadic fighting continues in the mountains and southern regions of the

In Ivan the Terrible’s correspondence to Andrei Kurbsky, the letters are a call and response style in regards to the concept of Russian identity in Muscovite Rus. Prince Kurbsky initiates the conversation criticizing Ivan’s methodology within his rule. The author notes on Ivan’s “fierce persecution” of his own people, positing that the tsar himself is turning from the very foundations of Russian society: the Orthodox faith. However, despite notions of truth in

Many Chechens have lived in their respective villages not just for generations, but for centuries. My interview subject revealed her knowledge that many of her ancestors from "a long time ago" were Jewish, and that some of the people trace their tribal lineage to the "Biblical times." There is a sense of senselessness to the killing that transcends rational thought. The so-called "rebels" have been painted as terrorists by the skillful propaganda machine; any rational analysis of the situation in Chechnya reveals the real truth. As Rodrigue (2008) points out, Chechnya is important for the Russians because of access to strategic oil reserves in the Caucasus. "Although some of the Caucasus nations obtained their independence, like Georgia and Armenia in the southern Caucasus, the new Russian

In 1917 the Russian Empire plunged. Not long after, Chechnya’s declaration for independence failed, they

“I have been questioning his methods of ruling for years now, ever since he stripped my family of my beloved brother. I had idolized my brother and was inspired to follow his footsteps in a fight for change when the Tsar’s okhrana brutality took him from me on May the 8th, 1887. I believed the Tsar Nicholas’s ruling methods to be outdated and his use of brutality and ignorance to be the cause of the minorities depression within this mislead country. The motivation my brother’s death brought to me pushed me to investigate further into politics. Here I found more unjust laws the Tsar stood by and I decided to work hard enough to make a change.”

The Chechens were the most active opponents of Russia 's conquest (1818–1917) of the Caucasus. They fought bitterly during an unsuccessful 1850s rebellion led by Imam Shamyl. “The Chechens are a combative people, difficult to conquer, easier to buy”,

The Chechen Republic or, informally, Chechnya, is a federal subject of Russia. It is located in the Northern Caucasus Mountains, in the Southern Federal District within 100 kilometers of the Caspian Sea (Chechnya, 2013). The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny. The population of Chechnya was 1,268,989, according to the 2010 Russian Census (Chechnya, 2013). As of the 2010 Census, Chechens make up 95.3% at 1,206,551 of the republic 's population. The predominant religion in Chechnya is Islam. Chechens are overwhelmingly adherent to the Shafi 'i Madhhab of Sunni Islam, the republic having converted to Islam between the 16th and the 19th centuries (Twigg, 2005) . In 1997 Chechnya officially embraced Islam

On October 1, 1999, Russian troops crossed the border into the de facto Republic of Chechnya, this was merely a new episode in a series of conflicts that plagued the region since the 18th century, and still present until today. In 1783 the North Caucasus region which includes Chechnya was ceded to Russia, and in 1859 Chechnya was formally annexed. Still it the reoccurrence of conflicts suggest that Chechens have never really accepted being a part of Russia, nor were they assimilated, violence eruption took a form of cycles from 1785 to 1791 the Sheikh Mansur revolt, the Great Gazavat (Murid War) from 1829 to 1859, the Russian Civil War from 1921 to the mid 1930’s, insurgency during Second World War from 1940-1944, Chechen Slav ethnic clashes

The media was a crucial control tactic and influential method of spreading news and opinions in the USSR and Russia. Depending on who had the monopoly, state or private parties, resulted in the control of the transitioning state. Those who were in charge of the message of the media, were also in charge of the country. In this case, the transmitters of the media were able to design the government and just as quickly lose its control over it. When free press was established under Yeltsin's presidency and the collapse of the Soviet Union, journalists received privileges of influencing the country. The media became a means of mobilization and effective propaganda for the liberal intelligentsia audience. However, the media war ended in the election

Chechnya is situated in the Caucasus Mountains, between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. It is surrounded by Dagestan to the east, Georgia and South Ossetia to the south, Russia to the north and North Ossetia in the west. Chechnya is rich in mineral oil and produced twenty million tons per year before the disintegration of the Soviet Union. The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 created the opportunity for the Russian provinces to declare their independence. The Russian government managed to keep its control of all states apart from Chechnya, which, under the new president Dzhokhar Dudayev, declared independence in October 1991.

Russia was one of the main initiators of the break-up of the Soviet Union. Because the former Soviet countries received independence was something that Russia wanted itself. On Christmas Day 1991, the Soviet flag flying over the Kremlin was lowered and replaced by the new Russian banner. The USSR officially ceased to exist on 31 December. The Cold War was

Chechnya is a republic located in southwest Russia. It has a land area of approximately