Good question. How would you respond? I'd be seriously considering putting everyone in an containment camp at this point. Curfews. Shoot first ask questions second. Removal of children from families to reeducation camps. Every neighborhood I could identify as the origin of the terrorists would be leveled. Families of those terrorists would be relocated. If the block of Arab terrorists turn out to have a common origin, there government would be told that they had either police thier borders in the future or risk war with Russia, and it would be noted that do to Russia's current economic difficulties that nuclear retaliation would be considered a first option. Russia doesn't have the sort of options the U.S. has, and it certainly can't afford these mini-9/11's every week. Realisticly, I'd arm the Russian population and turn all of Southern Russia into a militia camp. Every Russian man between the ages of 18 and 45 would be issued an AK-47 and train two weekends a month. Communities would be asked form watches. All women about the age of 16 would be issued side arms and taught how to use. I'm sure the NRA would love to open up chapters in Russia. I'm sure the Minutemen would love to provide militia training. Citizens would be told to never allow themselves to become hostages, that they have a better chance of surviving if they run immediately and failing that to fight. The fact of the matter is that the Chechnyans have decided to start an no holds barred ethnic war. The best responce to that is to arm the ethnic majority to the teeth and allow anger to work the problem out. Sooner or latter, the surviving Chechnyans will realize that this was a really stupid mistake. If the world complains that you are perpretrating a genocide, make note of the fact that you didn't start it.

If I were Putin I would tell the government's of Saudia Arabia, etc. that they better take whatever steps that they think are necessary to be 100% certain that none of there citizens every kill one of my children again, or they can be 100% certain that there country will be a radioactive wasteland the next time it happens. If they complain that they would have to take extreme and inhumanely harsh actions to be that certain, then I'd tell them that isn't my problem. I have a duty to protect my citizens. They have a duty to protect thier citizens. If they believe that the best way that they can protect thier citizens is to mess with an angry nuclear power, that is thier mistake. And I'd note that they better not be thinking that they can just abandon thier people and go hide in Monaco or Swizterland, because if that happens there will be former-KGB assassins following them until the end of thier days.

What do you think Russia has been doing for the past 10 years in Chechnya.

Putin vows 'all-out war' 05/09/2004 President Vladimir Putin has vowed an "all-out war" against terrorism as the death toll from the Russian school siege looks set to rise above 500. The death toll from the three-day siege in the North Ossetian town of Beslan has reached more than 350 and officials have said that the final figure would be much higher. Hours after emergency workers completed the task of clearing bodies of children and adults from the devastated ruins, Mr Putin admitted his nation had been unprepared for the threat from militants. "We showed weakness, and weak people are beaten," he said in an address on national television. He vowed to provide an adequate military response and confirmed that he would authorise more funding for security forces and border control. Mr Putin said: "What happened was a terrorist act that was inhuman and unprecedented in its cruelty. This is not just a challenge to the president, or to the parliament, but the whole of Russia. It is an attack on the whole country." He claimed that following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the nation was weakened and unable to respond effectively, but said Russia would now look to develop new methods to combat militants. "In general, we need to admit that we did not show an understanding of the complexities and dangers of the processes occurring in our own country and in the world," Mr Putin added. "In any case, we couldn't adequately react. We showed weakness, and weak people are beaten." - telegraph.co.uk

>>If the world complains that you are perpretrating a genocide, make note of the fact that you didn't start it.<< The jury's still out (literally) on whether or not that idea worked for Milosevic. Putin would do well to ask the Sudanese how they killed 2 million people without having to deal with the negative press.

I'd begin by reforming my military, fast. Serious structural reforms are in order. And on the tactical level learn to do the kind of precision work that the Americans and ISraelis have gotten good at. The Russian heavy-fist approach doesn't get results. Second, I'd rethink (finally) my support for Iran. Enough with dealing with the devil. Third? Hell, I don't know. Maybe build a big friggin wall.

I would be surprise but not shocked if Georgia, Azerbijan, and Armenia suddenly found them selves under the grip of moscow again. russians people want revenge for the slaughter of the school children. if that revenge came in the form of the russian flag being raised over former territory of russia. maybe border incursions into iran, but that is highly unlikely.