April 23,
2008: In Chechnya, Russia finally established peace (at least by local
standards) by putting the toughest warlords in charge. This is an old tactic,
and has worked in the past. One problem was that the Russians did not want to
divide the province into smaller parts, each run by a different warlord. So, as
a compromise, Ramzan Kadyrov, and his allies, were put in charge of the Chechen
Republic (province) government (via elections, of course.) Meanwhile, the other
major gang, led by the three Yamadaev brothers (and clan), were put in charge
of the Vostok Battalion. This outfit, with a strength of 300-400 men, is
largely composed of rebels who have accepted the amnesty. To separate the
Vostok Battalion from the government, it was attached to the Russian Army's
42nd Motorized Rifle Division, which was stationed in Chechnya.
There was
still friction between Kadyrov's provincial police and counter-terror forces,
and the Vostok Battalion (which was, technically, a counter-terror unit that
worked for the army, not the provincial government.) The Vostok guys did not
get along with the provincial forces, and in mid-April, weeks of growing
tensions erupted into a daylong gun battle in the town of Gudermes. The Vostok
Battalion called on the 42nd division to send reinforcements, which didn't
happen. Instead, the Russians prevented the provincial forces from getting
reinforcements, and eventually got both sides to stop shooting. At least 18
were killed, and many more wounded.
Both sides
accused each other of running criminal operations (kidnapping, extortion,
prostitution and so on). Both sides were right, and the hostility was the
result of turf battles. Who should be the chief criminal in what part of the
province? The Russians have to sort all this out, otherwise, the fighting will
resume.
