By KYIV. Nov 1 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Chechen diaspora intends to consolidate its society in order to eventually return to its land through de-occupation, Chechen public and political figure, son of ex-President of Ichkeria Anzor Maskhadov said at a press conference at the Interfax-Ukraine agency in Kyiv on Tuesday.
"Now we are working on consolidating our society, which is located in a foreign land. We see and meet understanding from Ukraine and other European countries. And our organization that deals with these issues – European politicians and organizations help them. We are meeting with them and working towards the day when the Chechen people will return to their land through de-occupation," he said.
Maskhadov noted that "the Chechen land should be cleared of criminals, Russian occupiers and their puppets, gaining independence and freedom."
"And our goal is to achieve security guarantees for our people, so that neither the Russian Federation nor anyone else can ever encroach on our freedom again!" he said.
In turn, president of the Chechen Bart Marsho Association Dzhambulat Suleimanov spoke out against the creation of a "government in exile."
"There should be a representative body of the Chechen people that fights for de-occupation. And after the de-occupation, national elections will be held, at which the people themselves will decide who their leader is," Suleimanov said.
"Today we are preparing for the congress on November 25-26. We are the Chechen people," he stressed.
"We are striving today to create a unified force through the holding of the Chechen congress to overcome the national crisis. The crisis exists precisely because of irresponsible politicians who are not even able to agree among themselves," the president of the association added.
At the same time, Maskhadov spoke negatively about the well-known Chechen politician Akhmed Zakayev, who, according to him, "declares himself Commander-in-Chief."
"No Chechen can call himself Commander-in-Chief. Because the commander-in-chief is the president. And the president can be a person chosen by the people," he said.
In addition, the son of the former president of Ichkeria noted that he and his associates will call out to the congress at the end of November "everyone who wants to walk side by side and together for the sake of the common future of the Chechen people."
"We don’t think about anything else. We want to defeat fascist Russia and then punish the criminals in the person of Kadyrov and others," Maskhadov summed up.
