Copyright © 2021 Euromaidanpress.com

The work of Euromaidan Press is supported by the International Renaissance Foundation

When referencing our materials, please include an active hyperlink to the Euromaidan Press material and a maximum 500-character extract of the story. To reprint anything longer, written permission must be acquired from [email protected].

Privacy and Cookie Policies.

Only 53% of Kadyrov’s troops in Ukraine are ethnic Chechens

Troops from Chechnya in Ukraine. Credit: Gur.gov.ua
Troops from Chechnya in Ukraine. Credit: Gur.gov.ua

Ukraine’s intelligence service has established that only 53 percent of the men who are listed as volunteers from Chechnya are in fact ethnic Chechens. The remainder are overwhelmingly ethnic Russians.

Related: Inter-ethnic animosity saps effectiveness of Russia’s army in Ukraine

Given the attention Ramzan Kadyrov’s units have attracted because of their numbers and brutality in Ukraine, this finding is important in at least three ways:

  • First, it suggests that the boss of Chechnya has been far less successful in attracting Chechens to his units than he claims despite his use of repressive measure to get people of the republic under his control to “volunteer.”
  • Second, it helps to explain conflicts between Kadyrov’s unit and others in the Russian invasion force such as the Buryats, something that may have less to do with hostility among non-Russians than with hostility between all non-Russians and the ethnic Russians who dominate the Russian command if not always its lower ranks.
  • And third – and this is far and away the most important – it indicates that much of the brutality that the Kadyrov force has engaged in has less to do with Chechens than with Putin loyalist Kadyrov’s desire to show how tough he is, even if he has to do it with ethnic Russians who may be far more guilty than many suppose.

Following the publication of this data and the Ukrainian military intelligence service’s offer a list of the names on which they draw the conclusions about the numbers, Moscow propagandists will no longer be able to credibly claim that the Chechens and other non-Russians are responsible for any crimes against humanity in Ukraine.

Related: League of Free Nations: Indigenous activists from Russia to fight for independence from Moscow

These numbers show that the ethnic Russians are playing the dominant role even when they are operating in nominally “Chechen” units.

Read More:

You could close this page. Or you could join our community and help us produce more materials like this.  We keep our reporting open and accessible to everyone because we believe in the power of free information. This is why our small, cost-effective team depends on the support of readers like you to bring deliver timely news, quality analysis, and on-the-ground reports about Russia's war against Ukraine and Ukraine's struggle to build a democratic society. A little bit goes a long way: for as little as the cost of one cup of coffee a month, you can help build bridges between Ukraine and the rest of the world, plus become a co-creator and vote for topics we should cover next. Become a patron or see other ways to support. Become a Patron!
Total
0
Shares
Related Posts