3. Russia: separatism and conflicts in the North Caucasus*

Gennady Chufrin

The contemporary separatist movements are one of the most dangerous threats to Russian national security and territorial integrity. This is particularly the case in the North Caucasus, where separatist forces often act under the guise of ethnic or religious movements. Although the Russian federal authorities attempt to fight separatism by political means, in Dagestan and Chechnya they resorted to the use of force in 1999 in order to defeat the Chechen-led armed rebellion. By the end of the year the federal forces had re-established their control over most parts of Chechnya lost in the previous war, in 1994–96, but they failed to achieve a decisive military victory over the separatists. Nor was there any political resolution of the conflict.
As the conflict in Chechnya caused numerous casualties and a massive refugee problem among its civilian population, the Russian Government came under strong criticism from the West on humanitarian grounds. These disagreements, although a major irritant in relations between Russia and the West, are unlikely to affect the central issues of their relationship, such as their interaction on global security issues.