21 August 2024
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday visited Kabarda–Balkaria, North Ossetia, and Chechnya, reportedly for the first time in over a decade.
Putin visited Beslan in the run-up to the 20th anniversary of the Beslan School Siege on 1 September, and the Russian University of Special Forces in Grozny.
The Russian president had last visited North Ossetia in 2008, four years after the siege of the No. 1 School in Beslan by a group of armed North Caucasian militants led by Chechen guerrilla commander Shamil Basayev, which led to the death of over 300, including over 100 children.
On Tuesday, Putin visited monuments to the Alpha and Vympel special forces brigades, and a ‘Tree of Memory’ memorial to the victims of the attack. He also held a meeting with the Mothers of Beslan Association of Victims of Terrorist Attack.
Speaking at the meeting, Putin appeared to use the opportunity to rile up antagonism against Russia’s perceived ‘enemies’, including Ukraine, stating that the phrase ‘you wouldn’t wish [such tragedy] on your enemy’ did not apply in this case, because ‘our enemy is different, he is not like us’.
‘We know full well that abroad they tried not only to justify this horrendous crime, but also provided various forms of assistance to the terrorists: moral, political, informational, financial, and military. Well, when I say moral, these people of course have no morality or ethics, and we are seeing this now in real life’, said Putin.
Co-chair of the Mothers of Beslan, Aneta Gadieva, said that they told the president that the investigation into the Beslan case had been ongoing for 20 years, which she said 'surprised' him.
'We told him that the investigation was not completed, which surprised him very much and he said that he would instruct the head of the Investigative Committee, [Aleksandr] Bastrykin, to look into the situation,' Gadieva said.
The second co-chair, Emma Tagaeva, blamed the head of state for what happened and was not present at the meeting.
‘He should repent and apologise to the mothers for what happened, but he has been isolated from people. We have been living with this pain for 20 years. And all this time I consider him to be the culprit of the death of my family. It was he, as the supreme commander-in-chief, who gave the order to shoot at the school, and the school, full of children, was shelled by tanks and flamethrowers. What kind of hostage rescue was this? He allowed this tragedy to happen, did not investigate, and did not punish those responsible,’ Tagaeva said.
While in North Ossetia, Putin also met with the head of the republic, Sergei Menyailo, and instructed him to convey the concerns of the Mothers of Beslan to the prosecutor’s office. The politicians also discussed the implementation of a programme to overhaul preschool facilities.
Later the same day, Putin arrived in Chechnya, reportedly his first visit since 2011.
The head of state met with volunteers training at the Russian University of Special Forces in Gudermes, and visited a new mosque in Grozny and the grave of Akhmat Kadyrov, the former president of Chechnya and Chechen Head Ramzan Kadyrov’s father.
Kadyrov and the current mufti of Chechnya also gave Putin a badge and a certificate of honorary citizenship of Chechnya. Kadyrov also showed Putin a planned district in Grozny, set to be named after the Russian leader.
While in the North Caucasus, Putin also visited Kabarda-Balkaria, meeting with Republic Head Kazbek Kokov to discuss economic and demographic issues.
