In late November, Pope described soldiers from Buryatia and Chechnya as the “hardest” part of the Russian forces in Ukraine. The pope’s words aroused anger Public opinion in each of these regions and in Russia in general.
The Russian envoy to the Vatican, Alexander Avdeev, expressed his displeasure and lodged a protest with the Holy See’s diplomatic corps. In December, the Russian Foreign Ministry said it had received an official apology from the Vatican for Pope Francis’ remarks regarding Chechnya and Buryat, adding that it was over. Buryat leader Alexei Tsydenov called the Vatican’s apology “a powerful gesture”.
Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov spoke on this matter on Thursday. “We are glad that they realized their mistake and apologized. We accept their apology, but we say to everyone: Do not insult the Chechens.”
Kadyrovtsy is at war with Ukraine
Ramzan Kadyrov, 45, describes himself as “Putin’s soldier”. After the Second Chechen War, Moscow granted him a large degree of autonomy and donated huge sums of money for the reconstruction of Chechnya. Kadyrov and his people are under US sanctions and accused of war crimes.
In the early days of Russian aggression against Ukraine, the media reported that Chechnya sent 12,000 soldiers to the war. Kadyrov fighters. They were to create a barrage of troops to prevent the Russian soldiers from retreating and to ensure that the Russians did not avoid clashes with the Ukrainians.
The invasion of Ukraine has been going on since February 24 and has turned into the largest armed conflict in Europe since 1945. Russia believes that it is not waging war against Ukraine, but is carrying out a “special military operation” in order to “protect-speaking population” from the “neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv”” .
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