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| Caucasus |
| Ramzan Kadyrov now running Chechnya |
| 2004-05-12 |
| The troubled Russian province of Chechnya is now in effect being run by the son of Akhmad Kadyrov, the leader who was assassinated at the weekend, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday. However, Ramzan Kadyrov will not be able to run for president himself because he is three years under the legal minimum age of 30, said Aslambek Aslakhanov, who advises Putin on his native Chechnya. Ramzan Kadyrov was summoned to Putin's side shortly after his father died in a bombing Sunday, and has been made first deputy to the acting Chechen president, Sergei Abramov -- a 32-year-old accountant who was previously Chechen prime minister. Ramzan Kadyrov used to head his father's security service in Chechnya, where Moscow has been fighting separatists for a decade, and many analysts have been expecting him to step into his father's shoes. "He is an outstanding figure in Chechnya, he is the de facto leader," Aslakhanov told reporters. "He has authority. It is hard for Abramov ... he knows about finances but does not have enough experience of political authority." But he dismissed speculation that the Kremlin would find a way to let the younger Kadyrov, a bearded boxer aged 27, stand for president in an election set for Sept. 5. "According to the constitution he will not be president, because he is too young ... It is not realistic to hold a referendum to change the constitution," he said. Aslakhanov said he expected Kadyrov to maintain his father's line of refusing to negotiate with rebels on any topic but their surrender. "I do not think Ramzan will depart from the principles laid down by his father," he said. Aslakhanov, who is widely respected in Chechnya for his outspoken criticism of human rights abuses, has also been linked to the presidency. But he dismissed the idea, saying, "I have never had any presidential ambitions." |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |