Ten years ago the second Chechen war burst out

On September 23, 1999, President of Russia Boris Yeltsin signed a decree "On Measures to Improve Efficiency of Counterterrorist Operations in the Territory of the North-Caucasian Region of the Russian Federation". Practically on that very day mass bombardments of Grozny and other cities and settlements of Chechnya began. On September 30, federal forces entered the republic.

The majority of residents of the republic have a vague presentation about those events ten years ago, which were a prologue to a new bloodshed. People recollect the invasion of groups of militants under command of Basaev and Khattab into Dagestan to help the "battling Moslems", explosions of houses in Moscow and Volgodonsk, and Putin's promise to "whack terrorists in WCs."

However, even before the events in Dagestan and explosions of apartment houses, of which Moscow had accused Chechens, Russian militaries had actually seized a part of the territory of the non-recognized Chechen Republic of Ichkeria.

"The new war was decided in Moscow long before 1999; we can say: at once after the end of the first military campaign. Despite the signed peace treaty and delayed issue on the status of Ichkeria, Russian special agencies held active subversive activities in Chechnya. Everything was done to discredit Chechen leaders, first of all, President Maskhadov, whom Moscow had earlier recognized as the legitimate leader, and to present Chechens as bandits, terrorists and so on," a former Ichkeria deputy has noted.

As a result, "we have what we have: the ruined republic, dozens of thousands casualties on both parties, and mutual distrust and hatred," said the source of the "Caucasian Knot".