Chechnya - How long will it be ignored?

Until the recent escalations in the region, the war on Chechnya seems to have been long forgotten and ignored by the West. Every week brings another suicide bombing by the Black Widows of Chechnya, and every day sees more troops being shipped into the region to crush the fight for independence. Western Leaders such as Bush and Blair claim that Chechen Freedom Fighters are evil people on the level of Al Queda and the Mujahideen, but are they really as bad as we have been led to believe. Yes, suicide bombing in areas packed with innocent civilians is wrong; but we must understand why these people commit such horrific acts. I visited Chechnya on my travels just a few months ago and what I saw shocked me. Russian Soldiers bombard the capital, Grozny, throughout the night. Buildings containing innocent women and children are reduced to rubble. During the day, Hind helicopter gunships patrol the skies, gunning down any man who walks the streets. The Russian troops simply assume that any man walking in the capital is a rebel fighter. The rebels fight back in small skirmishes but are rarely successful.

Is this really a just war? Both sides are resorting to commiting worse and worse atrocities in an attempt to end the conflict, but all that will happen is that it will spiral out of control, and soon there will be no rules. Russia will murder innocent Chechens, and Chechnya will murder innocent Russians. And all the while, the West stand back with its "clean" hands and says "Chechnya, it is Russia's problem". Chechnya wont be a Russian problem soon. It will become a problem for the whole of the Western World as Chechen Rebels take a harder line against their "enemies".

So what can we do? Many times, Chechnya has officially requested help from America, but America, fearing the Russian's reaction, ignore the pleas for help and carry on pretending there is no problem.

Well, its simple. Both sides cease the bickering long enough to go to the UN. Or get a multinational talk going.

Russia is not to happy about outsiders getting involved in their internal affairs. Thus, it should be respected, and people should stay out of it.

Russia needs to at least open up some sort of door to neutral third parties to come in and assit with the situation.

It might not be ignored by the west much longer, considering that the Chechnyans are forging links with Al-Qaeda.

Originally posted by Skadi_the_Evil_Elf
Well, its simple. Both sides cease the bickering long enough to go to the UN. Or get a multinational talk going.

About what? You see, the independence is the key here. Russians would be quite happy to see a functional government in the Chechen autonomy, but without complete independence. On the other hand, the variety of factions in Chechnya, from fundamentalists to plain gangsters, want complete independence to achieve their respective goals.

It's an impasse, as far as I can see. The reason that Russians are loath to grant independence are twofold:
a) not to set a precedence for a part of Russia cessession
b) Chechen were rarely good neighbors of Russia. They routinely raided adjacent lands in the past. Giving them independence would futher promote this. Even now, the Chechen organized crime is real big in Moscow.

why am i not surprised? chechnya has been largely unreported in the western media for years. Afganistan is rarely reported but things there are getting out of control too! The US has little control of most of the country.

the porblem is the media thinks nobody cares as they think that it is not newsworthy as it has no effect of the west.

I don't know a great deal about the war but what I do know is it was and still is very brutal and it shouldn't take the deaths of hundreds of children to bring it to the attention of the western media!!

Chechnya - How long will it be ignored?

- Far worse than the ignoring was the usage of the conflict when it suited certain people in certain countries - yes, the good ol' USA was at it, in the days when incredibly brutal Muslim fundamentalists (terrorists?) were something to support and cheer on - to develop and keep the conflict going.

Way to go.

any support/sympathy I had for the Chechnyan cause vanished after the Beslan massacre

Chechan mujahideen are scum - you just had to see a fraction of teh videos on their now defunct kavkaz website to realise that they are animals. They are just as bad as Zaqawi in Iraq - executing peopple in the most horrific ways.

Here's another thread with a video of the Chechans shooting down a Russian Mil 24 gunship. Interestingly enough, they are using Russians most advanced handheld SAM. Theye has been a problem with Russian soldiers seeling weapons in Chechnya for hard cash - I wonder if this was one of them ?

www.abovetopsecret.com...

indeed the Chechens are brutal. their rebel army was formed and trained by the Mujahideen, a group of Islamic Mercenaries who travel the globe fighting Jihad. the Mujahideen fought in The Balkan States and Afghanistan, so their methods have become more and more brutal. Beslan was a terrible act of terrorism and cannot be forgiven, but why is it that when a russian guns down innocent chechens from his helicopter it is called "collateral damage" yet when a chechen guns down innocent people it is called "terrorism". both acts are the same and should be treated as such. if the UN acted on Chechnya, Russia would surely be bought to The Hague on a War Crimes trial.

as for chechnya itself and its fight for independence, the only reason Putin insists on keeping Chechnya is because it is a final attempt to hold onto a small chunk of what was once a great empire. Putin wants to hold on to his last bit of Soviet Union as though it gives him extra power.

Mayeb he's using Chechnya as a real life training ground to battle harden the Russian Army.

Originally posted by Aelita
a) not to set a precedence for a part of Russia cessession
b) Chechen were rarely good neighbors of Russia. They routinely raided adjacent lands in the past. Giving them independence would futher promote this. Even now, the Chechen organized crime is real big in Moscow.

Originally posted by Andrey Mikhailovich
indeed the Chechens are brutal. their rebel army was formed and trained by the Mujahideen, a group of Islamic Mercenaries who travel the globe fighting Jihad. the Mujahideen fought in The Balkan States and Afghanistan, so their methods have become more and more brutal. Beslan was a terrible act of terrorism and cannot be forgiven, but why is it that when a russian guns down innocent chechens from his helicopter it is called "collateral damage" yet when a chechen guns down innocent people it is called "terrorism". both acts are the same and should be treated as such. if the UN acted on Chechnya, Russia would surely be bought to The Hague on a War Crimes trial.

as for chechnya itself and its fight for independence, the only reason Putin insists on keeping Chechnya is because it is a final attempt to hold onto a small chunk of what was once a great empire. Putin wants to hold on to his last bit of Soviet Union as though it gives him extra power.

Look it really says now that you dont know # about this stuff. Chechnya if it gets independence it will be worse then right now! Why do you think Putin invaded Chechnya again? Yeltsin gave them freedom and they fell into anarchy and started to invade their neighbors. Russia then attacked again and now they will not give them freedom cause it causes to much problems! This has NOTHING to do with Russia wanting more power! Russia would be better of without Chechnya! I wish I was a leader! I would make it a parking lot for Russian military units! I was in Chechnya and I know what this conflict is about!

Out,
Russian

Originally posted by mad scientist
Mayeb he's using Chechnya as a real life training ground to battle harden the Russian Army.

They are trying out the new Ka-50 in Chechnya and I got to say it is doing very good lasttime I talked to the crew!

Out,
Russian

i was also in chechnya for a time. what i saw was a brutal form of fighting from both sides. chechnya has not had independence since the Czar were in power. sure, they were given their own government, but it was manned by russians and not chechnyans. i am also aware of the "Chechen Maliskia" as russian press has labelled them, but there are criminals in every country.