Thirty years ago, Dzhokhar Dudayev was assassinated by Russian forces. The former Soviet air force general served as the first president of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria after declaring its independence in 1991. 

Despite occurring at the same time as Soviet Socialist Republics (S.S.R.) left the U.S.S.R., Ichkeria’s claim was not recognized as, unlike other secessionist regions, it was an Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (A.S.S.R.) inside the Russian Federative Soviet Socialist Republic.

The lesson of Dudayev’s legacy is that Russia’s imperialism remains unsatiated, which requires solidarity across ideological and national boundaries. This lesson continues to ring true today.

Dudayev was born in Yalkhoroy, Checheno-Ingush A.S.S.R., a week before Stalin’s 1944 deportation of the Chechens and Ingush to Central Asia, with roughly one-third of their populations dying en route. Dudayev joined the military, rising through the ranks to become a major general in charge of the strategic bomber garrison in Tartu, Estonia. 

In 1990, Dudaev refused orders to crack down on pro-independence protests in Estonia. He retired from the military, returned to Chechnya and began pursuing independence. By the end of 1991, Dudayev had overthrown the local Communist Party and held a successful independence referendum. The First Chechen War commenced in December 1994.

In a May 1995 interview, Dudayev predicted that Crimea would become a bloodbath amidst a Russia-Ukraine war. He asserted that a facade of “Slavic unity” would be utilized to target Ukraine and Belarus. He further described Russian imperialistic nationalism as fundamentally misanthropic, with no regard for civilian lives. According to Dudayev, Russia’s imperial ambitions extend to the Indian Ocean, the Middle........

© The Moscow Times