Chechnya
Нохчийн Республика Chechen Republic | |
---|---|
Capital | Grozny |
Government | Russian republic |
Official Language | Russian, Chechen |
President | Ramzan Kadyrov |
Prime Minister | Odes Baysultanov |
Area | 15,300 km² |
Population (2002 estimate) | 1,103,686 |
The Chechen Republic, also known as Chechnya, is a Russian republic encompassing located in the North Caucasus mountain region. It borders the Russian republics of Ingushetia, North Ossetia, Dagestan, Stavropol Krai, as well as the pro-Western nation of Georgia to the south.
During the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Dzhokar Dudayev, a former Soviet Air Force general, led the Chechen people to declare independence from Russia, as the Chechens had been under Russian occupation for over a century. However, in December 1994, Boris Yeltsin turned against his promises of Chechen sovereignty, and invaded the repblic to restore Russian rule. The Chechen people defeated the Russians in the First Chechen War, and gained de facto independence in 1996.
After a series of apartment bombings by Chechen Islamist terrorist, Russian forces under Vladimir Putin invaded Chechnya once again and defeated the Chechenyans. Sice then Ramzan Kadyrov is President of Chechnya. Nevertheless, the terrorists continue to operate against the Russian occupation today.
American neoconservatives such as Richard Pipes have spoken out on the cause of Chechen freedom [1] Similar to the liberation of Kosovo, conservatives throughout the United States have called for Chechnya to be a free and independent nation.[2]
The terrorists from the Boston Marathon bombing where originally from Chechnya, but had been in the United States legally. The younger had become a naturalized citizen last year, while the older held a valid green card.[3]