Chechnya marks 20th anniversary of Russian-Chechen Peace Treaty

On May 12, 1997, twenty years ago, Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Aslan Maskhadov, President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, signed the "Treaty on Peace and Principles of Relations" between Russia and Chechnya, which consolidated the results of the First Chechen War.

Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Ichkerian President Aslan Maskhadov, who represented the parties to the treaty, officially declared the refusal to use force to resolve disputable issues and the desire to build the relations in accordance with the norms of international law.

The treaty was signed after the withdrawal of the Russian troops from Chechnya, and it consolidated the results of the First Chechen War.

The exact number of victims of the First Chechen War is unknown. According to various sources, the number of casualties reached 4000-14,000 Russian soldiers and officers, 3000-10,000 Chechen fighters, and 50,000-100,000 civilians.

However, in August 1999, despite the conclusion of the peace treaty, the Second Chechen War was started, which was officially called a counterterrorist operation (CTO). The hostilities were provoked by an attempt of militants led by Shamil Basaev and Khattab to invade Dagestan. The Second Chechen War lasted almost ten years, until April 2009.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.