Meetings between the Russian president and the head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, are always memorable. The one on August 21 was no exception. During his first visit to this autonomous territory in the Russian Caucasus since 2011, Vladimir Putin, who was greeted with great pomp by a smiling Ramzan Kadyrov accompanied by his three eldest sons, was made an “honorary citizen of the Chechen Republic.” And even kissed a Koran.
Against the backdrop of the Ukrainian military incursion into the Kursk region, this loyalist of the Russian president did not miss the opportunity to praise the merits of his Chechen soldiers on the ground, whom the Kremlin leader then praised.
Which earned him criticism from the war correspondents, this galaxy of military bloggers with a pro-Russian point of view, on their Telegram channels. “Yesterday, Pypa [NDLR : surnom de Vladimir Poutine] went to Chechnya, writes for example the channel Alex Parker Returns to his more than 200,000 subscribers. The military actions of the Chechens on the front were praised to him: detachments of ‘rats’ posted in the rear, superbly equipped, who naturally have not participated in any battle and refuse to participate in it.”
From “TikTok Soldiers” to Deserters and Prisoners
The hatred of Russian military correspondents towards Chechen soldiers, called the “Kadyrovtsy” and divided into “Akhmat” units (named after Ramzan Kadyrov’s father), has continued to grow as the war in Ukraine drags on. Since the beginning of the “special military operation” in February 2022, the Akhmat battalions have been conspicuous by their ineffectiveness, despite their tendency to film themselves in a manly manner in TikTok videos.
In May, Ramzan Kadyrov said that seven regiments and four battalions were serving in Ukraine, including the “Akhmat special forces.” In total, according to the Chechen authorities, several tens of thousands of their men have already been sent to the front. But Western military experts estimate that there are in reality only a few thousand – and rather in rear positions than in combat zones.
However, it was the “Kadyrovtsy” who found themselves on the front lines against the invasion of Ukrainian forces on August 6. They were partly blamed for the Russian army’s bitter failure. The Telegram channel “VChK-OGPU” accused the Akhmat soldiers of “running away” and being easily captured. Unglamorous images of Chechen soldiers with their hands tied and their eyes blindfolded circulated on social networks a few days after the start of the Ukrainian offensive.
Apti Alaudinov, the omnipresent Chechen commander
An embarrassing attitude for the “Chechen pride”. The commander of the Akhmat special forces, Apti Alaudinov, initially denied that some of his men had been captured by the Ukrainians… Before finally confirming that five soldiers had been taken prisoner. “A captured Chechen is no longer a Kadyrovtsy. For a Chechen, there is nothing more shameful than being captured,” he said. Apti Alaudinov also refuted the mass abandonment of his soldiers’ posts. “The enemy tells a lot of false stories about the capitulation of the soldiers of the Akhmat special forces… But the most interesting thing is that none of our fighters have surrendered. The guys are fighting like lions.”
Defending tooth and nail the honor of his soldiers, Alaudinov, who has been at the head of Akhmat’s special forces since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, currently occupies a prominent media space, which contrasts with the silence of other generals of the Russian army since the Ukrainian invasion in Kursk. And with the reality of his successes. He comments on the situation on the front via dozens of messages on his social networks, constantly emphasizing the progress of the Russian army against the Ukrainians. “In the next two or three months, all this will be completely over. Not only in the Kursk region, but for the entire ‘special military operation’,” he assured in an interview to a Chinese blogger.
While his statements are echoed throughout Russia, his recent rise in the Russian military hierarchy is attracting attention. Last April, he was appointed deputy head of the military-political directorate of the Russian Defense Ministry. This propelled him to a federal position, he who began his career in the law enforcement agencies of the Chechen Republic, and chained posts in the Ministries of the Interior and Justice of Chechnya. Described as cruel and intransigent, his name is mentioned by several observers as a possible successor to the Chechen president, weakened by serious health problems. There is no doubt that he will now try to use the Battle of Kursk as a springboard to continue climbing the ranks.
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