BY SYED MOHAMMED ALI*
BRIEF BACKGROUND
According to political geographer and ABC commentator Harm J. de Blij, Chechnya is one of the Russian Federation's 23 internal republics,. Chechnya and six other small, turbulent, and culturally distinctive Russian republics lie along the north slope of the Caucasus. The 1 million Chechens are Muslims.
When the Soviet Union broke up in 1991, each of the 15 Soviet republics declared independence, including the Russian Federation. Each new country claimed ownership of any territory of former Soviet autonomous regions located within its boundaries. Hence, there were no accommodations made for the independence of these small and culturally distinctive territories. Nonetheless, Chechnya's leader Jokhar Dudayev declared his state's independence in 1991. Although this was an irritation to the Russian federal government, there were many more important issues for the national government at that time.
The then Russian President Boris Yeltsin first began a clandestine army action using Russian volunteers and mercenaries against Chechan freedom fighters. When that strategy proved unsuccessful against the tough Chechen irregulars, he sent in the Russian Army. Two centuries of Chechen rebellion against Russian domination have instilled a dogged determinism into the Chechen character. The Russian Army is finding itself becoming reluctantly enmeshed in a deadly guerrilla war. Regardless of the immediate outcome, the rest of the world has considered this an internal Russian conflict. Many are wondering whether the rugged Caucasus, however, might provide refuge to a Chechen guerrilla force that will challenge the Russians for years to come.
Role of the UN Security Council
As far as a role of United Nations Security Council in Chechan conflict is concerned, there has been no such work done on their part. What was expected from them, wasn't what we saw in the recent years. If we try to find what role the United Nation Security Council in the Chechen conflict, we won't find much matter on that. There is one exceptional move of the UN Security Council, which is worth mentioning. And that is, the approval of a resolution 1250, which also did not prove much of help to the Chechens. All we can do at the moment is to devise and suggest a plan for the UN Security Council, which, in our opinion, is for the betterment of the residents of Chechnya.
First Steps
- Immediately halt use in the war zone of aircraft, artillery, tanks and other armor, massed rifle fire, and grenade launchers. Snipers should be recalled. The Chechen side should be responsible for controlling its militia detachments and vigilantes. Movement of troops or weapons within Grozny without the express consent of both parties should be strictly forbidden.
- As soon as the agreement is reached for a temporary cease-fire, a joint Military Control Commission will be organized and empowered to decide all questions with respect to the cease-fire agreement.
Steps for the resolution of Chechan conflict
- Military activity of any kind will be forbidden in the security zone between the perimeters of the opposing sides.
- The removal of the dead and the evacuation of wounded federal soldiers and civilians and of non-combatants wishing to leave Grozny.
- A mutual exchange of prisoners by the parties to the conflict after appropriate negotiations.
- extension of the agreement to the entire territory of the Chechen Republic.
- As soon as this has been achieved, a complete ban on the introduction onto Chechen territory of any units of the Russian Armed Forces.
- The staged withdrawal of units of the Russian Armed Forces from the Chechen Republic and their replacement by units under the command of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
- Negotiations seeking the Chechens' return to federal control of armor and other heavy weapons and the simultaneous withdrawal from Chechen territory by the federal forces of artillery, tanks and other armor. Further air strikes -- whether using conventional bombs or rockets -- to be prohibited; redeployment of regular military units of the Russian Armed Forces and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to permanent stations following Chechen guarantees not to attack them.
- Chechan police to be assigned responsibility for maintaining law and order.
Proposals for a Political Settlement
In pursuit of a subsequent broad political settlement, I consider it advisable to conduct in the Chechen Republic a national round-table conference which would define the fundamental principles of Chechnya's internal government structures and select a delegation to negotiate with Russia's federal authorities; conduct negotiations without preconditions between delegations representing Russia's federal authorities and Chechnya about regulating their relations; begin preparations for and as soon as practical convene a Caucasian Peace Conference with representatives of public organizations of the peoples of the Caucasus and representatives of the government bodies of the republics, territories, and regions of the North Caucasus. The Conference should work out and propose to the government bodies of the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic a plan for a peace settlement in Chechnya. In the future, the Caucasian Peace Conference might be accorded permanent status and assigned the task of working out proposals for the normalization of the situation in the region as a whole, including settlement of the Ingush question. Observers, including international observers, may take part in the negotiations and settlement.
Self-Determination Versus Territorial Integrity of States
The crux of peace negotiations, when they take place, will be the clash between the principle of self-determination and the internationally recognized right of sovereign states to defend their territorial integrity and the inviolability of their frontiers. Several neutral observers have suggested that Chechnya should recognize Russian sovereignty, and Russia in return should grant Chechnya broad autonomy in ordering its domestic affairs, similar to that enjoyed by Tatarstan in Russia, the Aaland Islands in Finland, or Puerto Rico in the United States. Few are willing to address what should be done if the Chechens reject Russian sovereignty, bring up the "long train of abuses and usurpations" by Russian governments over the last two hundred years, and assert that "it is their right, it is their duty to throw off such government" and become an independent nation-state.
Conclusion
There is no quick fix or a just solution to the Russian-Chechen conflict, nor to other similar, deep-rooted inter-ethnic confrontations. Competing interests must be acknowledged, and all possible solutions, including secession, population exchange, and various models of political or cultural autonomy with possible international oversight, candidly explored. We should recognize that the Chechens constitute a nation. They, like other people, enjoy the right to self-determination, which should be exercised with due respect for the rights of other people and nations. We should at the same time acknowledge that the right of self-determination does not necessarily mean international recognition of every people as an independent, sovereign state. All this, is not possible without solid and result oriented UN Security Council efforts. But in my opinion, the main hindrance, is the Veto Power Russia holds at the moment, and which is being misused to the most undesirable extent.
* Student, B.A (Hons) Third Year, Department of International Relations, University of Karachi.
