Persoverzicht Tsjetsjenië - oktober 2017

• 2017-11-06
• Democratie & mensenrechten Europa in de wereld

4 oktober 2017

Governor reshuffle: acting head of Dagestan appointed: President Putin has accepted the resignation of Dagestan's head Ramazan Abdulatipov and appointed Vladimir Vasilyev acting head of Dagestan. Until now, Vasilyev has been Duma deputy speaker and the head of the Duma's United Russia faction.  RBK daily notes that for the first time in the modern history of Dagestan, not a representative of one of the ethnic groups has become the head of the region. Experts, contacted by RBK daily, recall that Vasilyev served as a Deputy Interior Minister and express the view that he would manage to coordinate the fight against the terrorist underground in Dagestan and mitigate inter-ethnic and inter-clan tensions in the republic. (ii) RBK daily reports on a training course organized by the Presidential Administration for potential candidates for regional heads and municipal officials. (Kommersant, MK, RBK, RG, Vedomosti)

Islamic State claims responsibility for attacks on police in Dagestan: Reportedly, the Islamic State terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the recent killings of two police officers in Dagestan. (Lenta.ru)

5 oktober 2017

Who will head Duma's United Russia faction?: RBK daily names Duma deputy speaker and senior official of the United Russia party Sergey Neverov as a likely candidate to replace Vladimir Vasilyev as the head of the Duma's United Russia faction. Earlier this week, Vasilyev was appointed acting head of Dagestan. (RBK) 

9 oktober 2017

Russian Aerospace Forces kill 120 terrorists in Syria: Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Konashenkov said on Saturday that up to 80 militants, including nine militants coming from the North Caucasus, had been killed in an airstrike delivered by the Russian Aerospace Forces in the area of the town of Mayadeen in Syria. He added that 40 militants had been killed in the area of the town of Abu Kamal near the Iraqi-Syrian border. Meanwhile, Nezavisimaya Gazeta reports that Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu has accused Russia of bombing civilians and moderate opposition in Syria's Idlib. (ii) Press cites Syrian Army general Ali al-Ali, who claimed that "the US supplied to Islamic State terrorists in Syria 1,421 trucks with military hardware and weapons between 5 June and 15 September 2017." (NG, RG, TASS; Rossiya 1)

10 oktober 2017

Reshuffles in United Russia party: Duma deputy speaker Sergey Neverov has been elected the head of the Duma's United Russia faction to replace Vladimir Vasilyev. The latter has been appointed acting head of Dagestan. Olga Timofeyeva will be appointed as a deputy speaker of the Duma. Pskov governor Andrey Turchak is expected to become secretary of United Russia's general council. (Kommersant, NG, RG, Vedomosti)

11 oktober 2017

FSB: 20 sleeper terrorist cells exposed in North Caucasus: At a meeting of the National Antiterrorist Committee on Tuesday, the head of the Federal Security Service (FSB) Bortnikov said that the activity of 20 sleeper terrorist cells had been thwarted in the North Caucasus since the beginning of 2017. (ii) The National Antiterrorist Committee said on Tuesday that two militants were killed in an operation in Dagestan. (iii) Defense Minister Shoigu said that during the Russian-Belarusian military exercises Zapad-2017 ('West-2017'), servicemen practised tactics of countering Islamic State militants. (RG, Vedomosti)

12 oktober 2017

Sakhalin criticizes draft federal budget: Sakhalin's Legislative Assembly (regional parliament, where the majority belongs to the pro-government United Russia party) protests against the redistribution in favor of the federal centre of receipts from the 'Sakhalin-2' project, which is provided for in the draft federal budget. Sakhalin currently gets 75% of these receipts, which constitute one third of all its budget revenues. The federal centre now plans for itself these 75%. Some time ago, the Chechen leader Kadyrov protested against the reduction of the federal budget subsidies to Chechnya envisaged in the draft budget. Vedomosti in this connection draws attention to Russia's increased financial difficulties and the federal centre's attempts to consolidate control over financial flows. (Vedomosti)

16 oktober 2017

Reshuffles within United Russia party: Sources, contacted by RBK daily, argue that decisions on the appointment of Vladimir Vasilyev as acting head of Dagestan, Sergey Neverov the head of the Duma's United Russia party and Andrey Turchak as acting secretary of United Russia's general council have been made before former head of Dagestan Ramazan Abdulatipov announced his resignation. (ii) Reportedly, President Putin has met with TV celebrity Ksenia Sobchak, who is making a film about her father, the former mayor of St. Petersburg Anatoly Sobchak. Some experts do not rule out that Sobchak may take part in next year's Presidential elections. (Gazeta.ru, NG, RBK, Vedomosti)

National Antiterrorist Committee: four militants detained in Moscow, Dagestan: The National Antiterrorist Committee said on Saturday that law enforcement officers had detained in Moscow and Makhachkala four members of a 'sleeper' cell of the Islamic State terrorist group [banned in Russia], who planned to carry out a series of terror attacks in Dagestan. All the detainees are natives of Dagestan. (Kommersant)

17 oktober 2017

First complaint over persecution of LGBT people in Chechnya submitted to investigators: Maxim Lapunov, an ethnic Russian man who has lived in Chechnya for two years, has filed a complaint with investigators over the Chechen authorities' actions against LGBT people. Lapunov claimed that he was kept in custody and beaten for being gay. This was the first complaint filed with Russian investigators over the persecution of gay people in Chechnya. (Kommersant, Novaya Gazeta)

20 oktober 2017

Appointment: President Putin has appointed former head of Dagestan Ramazan Abdulatipov as Presidential envoy for humanitarian and economic cooperation with Caspian Sea states. (Kommersant)

27 oktober 2017

Deputy Interior Minister resigns following arrest of subordinate: Russian Deputy Interior Minister Alexander Makhonov submitted his resignation following the arrest of head of the Interior Ministry's scientific and production unit 'Special equipment and communication' Andrey Nechayev suspected of abuse of office. (ii) RBK daily reports on the detention of the commander of a unit of the Russian National Guard Troops Roman Kurdyukov after one of the officers, Marat Gadzhiyev, has shot and killed four other servicemen. The incident took place on 23 October in the village of Shelkovskaya in Chechnya. (Gazeta.ru, Kommersant, RBK)

31 oktober 2017

Wife of suspect in Putin assassination plot killed in attack outside Kyiv: Adam Osmayev accused by Russia of plotting to assassinate President Putin has been wounded and his wife, Amina Okuyeva, killed in an attack in the Kyiv region on Monday. The attack was the second attempt on the lives of Osmayev and Okuyeva in the past several months. Media recall that Osmayev, a native of Chechnya, and Okuyeva had fought against Russia-backed rebels in Donbass. Secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council Turchynov accused Russia of involvement in Okuyeva's killing. (Gazeta.ru)