Chechnya: War as a Continuation of Policy
Abstract
With the collapse of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) and the formation of the federated states of Russia, many nations of the old U.S.S.R. believed the time was right for them to seek further autonomy, and join what they believed was their historic and rightful place in the community of nations. Further complicating the development and stability of the new Russian federation was the instability of the new Russian federal government, where cohesion and development of national policy and interests could easily find themselves in conflict with the personal objectives of those seeking power. One such region seeking to be an autonomous republic was that of Chechnya, an area slightly larger than the state of Connecticut, located in the Caucasus region. The Russians used many different methods of statecraft to preserve the fragile federation, and in the case of Chechnya the instrument of statecraft finally chosen to keep Chechnya in the Federation was military intervention. While the use of military force may have maintained the federation, it is the position of this paper that the use of military force failed to fully accomplish the political and national objectives of Russia or Boris Yeltsin. This assertion is based on the fact that after militarily intervening, the Russian government entered into an uneasy truce that did not resolve the issue of Chechnya's position in the Russian federation and left overall control of the territory in the hands of the Chechens. Further, Russia is unable to exploit the economic strength of the region, especially its oil resources. One could even say that through the course of action taken by Russia that Chechnya moved from a member of the federation to an occupied territory.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2001
- Accession Number
- ADA442412
Entities
People
- Duane Smith
- Frederick Hodges
Organizations
- National War College