No, this isn't another Iraq diary, although there are strong resemblances between the two situations. The quote used as the diary title is from Chechen exile Akhmed Zakayev. As reported by
AFP, Aslan Maskhadov is dead, killed by Russian forces in action near Tolstoi-Yurt.
X-posted from Liberal Street Fight
As the personification of the Chechen independence struggle, Maskhadov was elected President of Chechnya in 1997, following the ceasefire that ended the 1994-96 Chechen War.
A veteran of 20 years as an artillery officer in the Soviet military, he was also the paramount military leader of the Chechen resistance in both periods of war with Russia ("Yeltsin's War" 1994-96, "Putin's War" 1999-present.)
In a recent and extensive interview with the Russian publication Novoe Vremya Maskhadov compared the two wars:
All wars are alike, people are killed on both sides, and in this sense there is no difference between this war, when Putin is president and the war when Yeltsin was president. The course of the wars is the same, both wars developed in the way it has happened for hundreds of years. The same ill-thought out policy of the Russian leadership in relation to the people of the Caucasus, especially the Chechens. The same untalented generals who lost the war and disgraced the Russian army and the Russian state: Kvashnin, Shamanov, Troshev and Babichev. And the same poorly trained and slack army -- the Soviet Army everyone was proud of in the past is no more. The same national-traitors and puppets called the heads of the government in the past and the heads of the administration today -- kadyrovs instead of zavgayevs. The same "peacemakers" and "saviours of the nation" -- khasbulatovs, aslakhanovs and saidullayevs. The first war was fought against Chechnya as "a nation of gangsters" with the aim of "restoring constitutional order". Later on, the Chechens were labelled wahhabites, terrorists and extremists, and the second war was dubbed an anti-terrorist operation. That is the only difference...
Our men have learned well the tactics used by the Russian army. They have learned to fight. I would say there is higher professionalism, organization and discipline in the present war. Even if our fighters used strong drinks or narcotics during the first war, no such cases have been recorded in the second one. During this war everyone has turned to Allah and set great hopes on him.
There are many kamikazes in the present war, though no such cases were known in the previous one. This is the result of the desire for revenge for the brutalities of Russian contract soldiers and criminals. Almost every commander has a radio station and sputnik telephones, and 50 to 60 percent of the commanders use the Internet. Patrushev deceives the public by talking about the strength of Chechen armed groups. When the generals were ordered to liquidate all our leaders by May 15 and complete the anti-terrorist operation, they said that only around a thousand Chechen fighters remained and the military phase of the operation was over in fact. Patrushev refuted this report saying that there were about 5,000 Chechen fighters. He felt that the army had not coped with its task and he would be made responsible for the Chechen situation. Had the army done its job the defence minister would not have been fired. Victors are not tried and sacked but promoted. Patrushev knew he would be unable to do anything by May 15 and felt he would also have to report back with disgrace. Those who heard Patrushev's statement will agree that he cut a poor figure. He virtually admitted that the Chechen operation was simply a waste of time and nothing would come of it.
I would give more truthful data about the strength of Chechen armed units if I had the right to do so. Let me say that today we have as many fighters as we can keep and need for subversive operations. A large army is not required for such a war. The others are in the reserve, and if a full-scale war breaks out the number of fighters will increase dozens of times.
(The entire interview is well worth a read.)
Yet despite the undoubted ability of the Chechen resistance to continue to hamstring the Russian military, just a month ago Maskhadov declared a unilateral ceasefire, explaining to Kommersant:
It is a gesture of goodwill, an attempt to show a commitment to peace and to bring the Russian leadership to its senses. In my view, the processes that are taking place today in the Caucasus are leading to catastrophe. In this situation, I consider it my duty to make maximum efforts to avoid the real threat faced not only by my people, but by the Russian people and all the peoples of the Caucasus. In addition, I am not sure that President Vladimir Putin is being reliably informed about the deep abyss of catastrophe that Russia and the whole of the Caucasus are being dragged into. I believe that the political will of the presidents of Russia and Ichkeria can put an end to this bloodbath. Therefore, my appeal is first of all to the president of Russia, and then, of course, to everyone whose conscience has not degraded hopelessly.
With this attempt at a ceasefire rebuffed, and with Maskhadov having died in battle, it seems certain that the present Chechen conflict will escalate. To make matters worse, with Maskhadov removed from the picture, the most widely recognized Chechen resistance leader is now Shamil Besayev, the architect of the Beslan massacre, of whom Maskhadov told Kommersant:
It is no secret from anybody that we have disagreements, mainly due to his choosing combat methods that are unacceptable to the Chechen people. Basaev considers himself to have the right to use such methods, to which I am unable to agree to on principle. I have said it many times and will not repeat myself now. After the terrible, tragic events in Beslan, I declared to the world that, after the end of the war, we will officially hand over to the International Tribunal all persons involved in crimes against humanity, including Basaev, who is suspected in the seizure of the theater in Dubrovka [where Nord-Ost was playing] and the school in Beslan. Until then, I will resist attempts by him and other commanders to take action against the civilian population of Russia. If Basaev abides by my ceasefire order, I will consider myself to have had great success in avoiding many terrorist acts that are not acceptable to our side.
The outlook is grim indeed, and there can be little doubt that Zakayev is entirely correct when he says the resistance will continue. Indeed, the conflict seems poised to take an unspeakably brutal turn.