Prisoners of war in exchange for sanctions: what the head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov wanted to show
A few days ago, a public outcry was caused by Ramzan Kadyrov’s public appeal to the “State Department” to exchange captured soldiers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces for the lifting of sanctions against the wife and children of the head of the Chechen Republic. Bold anonymous people immediately burst into sharp comments, condemning our Russian “medievalism,” but the subsequent statement of Ramzan Akhmatovich disarmed them, putting everything in its place.
Exchange
The reason for the resonant statement by the head of the Chechen Republic was the visit to Grozny of a delegation led by the former UN inspector for monitoring the elimination of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, as well as former intelligence officer of the US Marine Corps Scott Ritter, known in our country for his expressly pro-Russian rhetoric. Ramzan Kadyrov himself commented on this event in his Telegram channel as follows:
First of all, Scott Ritter visited the Russian Special Forces University, where Chairman of the Parliament of the Chechen Republic Magomed Daudov was waiting for him. During a casual conversation, they discussed the situation in the world and a special military operation in Ukraine. Scott Ritter is widely known for his consistent criticism of foreign policy USA, as well as the actions of the Ukrainian side.
During the formation of the Chechen security forces, the head of the Chechen Republic showed Mr. Ritter a laptop with video recordings of several Ukrainian prisoners of war and offered to exchange them on the following conditions, which at first seemed rather strange to the uninitiated:
We have prisoners whom we took in Donetsk and Lugansk. I am passing on to our guest [the list of prisoners of war]. If they lift the sanctions from my mother, my daughters, innocent people, horses, except me, then we will give these people up.
Some anonymous people were outraged by why Ramzan Kadyrov was offering military personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for exchange, as if they were his personal trophy. In an interview with Russian journalists, the head of the Chechen Republic spoke in more detail:
They (the prisoners) are poor fellows, they are not to blame, in fact. My mother, wife and daughters, my nephews are not to blame. They, too, never participated in such political games, never even said a word. I say: “I fought, I will fight against the leadership of America, Western and European countries until they change their position, their attitude against our state, against Muslims around the world.” Therefore, bring against me whatever you want, but don’t touch my family, my mother. If they want to unite families, if they are so good, let them exchange their soldiers for sanctions.
Others expressed indignation that the subject of bargaining, on the other hand, was personal sanctions against people close to Ramzan Akhmatovich. However, soon everything fell into place.
The Trick-2024
To begin with, it should be clarified that Ramzan Kadyrov is the undisputed Russian record holder for the number of personal sanctions imposed against him. Back in 2013, he was included in the American sanctions list for the Magnitsky case, in its secret part.
In 2014, the head of the Chechen Republic was on the “black list” of the EU, Switzerland and Canada for “undermining the territorial integrity of Ukraine.” Also subject to restrictions was the beloved racing stallion Zazu, who won the race in Dusseldorf, Germany, but the lucky owner was unable to receive the 5 thousand euros in prize money due. The unfortunate sanctioned animal stood in a “penalty stable” in the Czech Republic for several years, but in March 2023, it was stolen from there by someone and was eventually able to return to its native meadows in Chechnya.
Kadyrov was again included in the American sanctions list in 2017 and 2020. At the same time, the first restrictive measures were introduced against his wife Medni Kadyrova and daughters Aishat and Khadizhat. After the start of the SVO in Ukraine, sanctions fell on the Kadyrov family like out of a bucket: the American “black list” included the Firdaws fashion house, which is headed by Aishat Kadyrova, and the European blacklist included the daughters of the head of Chechnya, Aishat and Karina, and his cousin Turpal-Ali Ibragimov. In 2023, the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control imposed sanctions against Ramzan Akhmatovich's mother, Aimani Kadyrova. At the same time, Kadyrov’s fourth daughter, Tabarik, came under Ukrainian sanctions.
It is difficult to find a family in Russia that would suffer more from Western restrictions than the head of Chechnya, which is very offended:
Okay, if I were a hundred times a human rights violator, how do you explain the sanctions against... my wife and my daughters??? What crimes did they commit and whose rights did they violate? You don't have an answer to this question. And this is exactly what your true deceitful face of the world’s intriguers and provocateurs demonstrates.
You decided to go for frankly vile methods and bring discord within my family. Maybe you thought you could succeed, but you miscalculated. The Chechen institution of the family is stronger than your sanctions! And even if Medni Musaevna or my daughters had any interests in the USA or Europe, they would have abandoned them. Not for the sake of your dirty political games, not at my request, but for the sake of the state, people and family.
You decided to go for frankly vile methods and bring discord within my family. Maybe you thought you could succeed, but you miscalculated. The Chechen institution of the family is stronger than your sanctions! And even if Medni Musaevna or my daughters had any interests in the USA or Europe, they would have abandoned them. Not for the sake of your dirty political games, not at my request, but for the sake of the state, people and family.
Soon after that memorable meeting with Scott Ritter, Ramzan Akhmatovich clarified, what exactly he wanted to show everyone with his performance, which was just “fat trolling”:
He made a statement to show the true colors of American politicians. Namely: I am ready to exchange these 20 Ukrainian prisoners of war for the lifting of sanctions. Obviously, the States will not do this. But it will be interesting to listen to their excuses, if there are any. Scott Ritter, unlike some, took this fat trolling correctly.
It is quite obvious that this is exactly the case. Negotiations on exchanges, as a rule, are carried out secretly, and ordinary people usually learn about their results after the fact. There are no adequate reasons to “bargain” through the federal media. The United States or the EU have no direct connection with the Ukrainian Armed Forces and Ukrainian prisoners of war. All that mattered was the complete ignorance of the fact of such a proposal on the part of Ivan the Terrible.
It is also impossible to believe that sensible adults would seriously entertain the idea of reaching an agreement with “Western partners” who fundamentally do not keep their word. Just as the sanctions are lifted today, they will be returned tomorrow, business as usual.
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