Kadyrov threatens to seize part of lands from Ingushetia with help of Kremlin

If the Ingush side is dissatisfied with the border agreement, Chechnya, with the help of the Russian federal authorities, will achieve a decision in its favour and return eight more villages from Ingushetia, Ramzan Kadyrov announces.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on November 11, the “Chechenavtodor” carried out excavation work on the bank of the Fortanga River, along which the border with Ingushetia passes. The above work provoked indignation in Ingushetia, both among local residents and among officials. Ramzan Kadyrov said that the protest against the work was organized in Ingushetia by “a bunch of provocateurs who were trying to put through the nationalist ace.” The leader of Chechnya also noted that he was able to take away from Ingushetia the lands that had passed to the republic during the time of Dzhokhar Dudayev. On November 21, a Chechen delegation arrived on the bank of the Fortanga River to decide on the belonging of the border lands in accordance with Sharia, but no representatives of Ingushetia did appear.

At a meeting in Grozny, mainly devoted to the situation with the coronavirus, Ramzan Kadyrov once again mentioned the situation at the border and repeated his threats to seize new territories from Ingushetia by revising the agreement between the previous authorities of Ingushetia and Dzhokhar Dudayev.

“If they do not agree with what we have done, then we will request the state leaders to make the right decision <...> Thus, our eight villages will return to us,” said the leader of Chechnya as quoted in the today’s publication of the “Kavkaz.Realii”*.

The original video from the meeting, which was held in the Chechen language, was posted on the Ramzan Kadyrov’s page on the “VKontakte” on the night of November 25. In the accompanying text, the leader of Chechnya states that “the issue of setting up the borders has been closed once and for ever.” “And it is not subject to revision. It’s time for everyone to learn that. The current situation is fully consistent with the current laws and Sharia norms. And we are ready to prove it to anyone!” Ramzan Kadyrov states in the post.

Let us remind you that the agreement on the Chechen-Ingush border, signed in September 2018, led to massive popular protests in Ingushetia. Activists accused the then Ingush leader Yunus-Bek Evkurov of transferring part of the Ingush lands to the neighbouring republic.

* The publication is included by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) of Russia in the list of foreign media agents.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 25, 2021 at 07:48 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.