Russia vs. Chechnya

1996 -1999

Core issue: Chechnya sought for unconditional independence but Russia
opposed the secessionist movement, defending its territorial integrity

Type of conflict ending: Violent thawing

In October 1991, Dzochar Dudayev was elected president by the Chechen people. As a consequence,
he declared independence from Russia and announced the creation of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. The declaration of independence was not recognized internationally as Chechnya was not an autonomous republic within the Soviet Union. As the tensions between Chechnya and Moscow increased, Russian forces entered the territory and launched a large-scale military offensive in 1994 to restore control. The First Chechen War ended with a complete defeat for the Russian army in 1996, when a successful Chechen counterattack on Grozny re-took control of the city that had been held by the Russian forces since early 1995. Officially, the war ended as the result of the Khasavyurt Accords signed on August 30, 1996. The Accords ended the bloodshed, but they did not resolve the non-recognition of Chechnya by the Russian Federation.

This de-facto independence lasted until 1999 Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin declared a "counter-terrorism operation" as a response to the incursion by Chechen fighters into the neighboring republic of Dagestan. The Second Chechen War ended de facto indenpendene. Chechnya remains part of the Russian Federation. The core issue was therefore resolved through violent thawing.

Sources

Atrokhov, W. T., 1999. "The Khasavyurt Accords: Maintaining the Rule of Law and Legitimacy of Democracy in the Russian Federation Amidst the Chechen Crisis", Cornell International Law Journal, 32 (2), 368-392.

BBC, 2009. "Russia 'ends Chechnya operation'" Accessed 6 August 2019 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8001495.stm>

Denber, R., 2004. "'Glad to be Deceived': The International Community and Chechnya" Accessed 10 October 2019 <https://www.hrw.org/legacy/wr2k4/7.htm#_Toc58744956>

Furman, D., 2002. Russia, Chechnya and the international community. <https://odihpn.org/magazine/russia-chechnya-and-the-international-community/>

"Feature History-Chechen Wars (1/2)", 2017. [online video], https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX-xs9VJ-BI

"Medvedev Mulls Lifting Tight Chechnya Security Regime", 2009. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 27 March. Accessed 6 August 2019 <https://www.rferl.org/a/Russia_Mulls_Lifting_Tight_Chechnya_Security_Regime/1563250.html>

Sarkees, Meredith Reid and Frank Wayman, 2010. Resort to War: 1816-2007, Washington DC: CQ Press.

"UCDP - Uppsala Conflict Data Program: Russia (Soviet Union): Chechnya", 2019. Accessed 18 July 2019 <https://ucdp.uu.se/#conflict/401>