Eight Pieces of Empire (41 page)

The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia remained at a deadlock as of this writing, bogged down in details, both sides continuing to arm themselves to the teeth with more and more sophisticated weapons, bringing closer the prospect of another, and far more dangerous, war.

The republics of Central Asia for the most part have continued to grow more authoritarian. In Kyrgyzstan, 2010 brought an out-of-control blowup between ethnic Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks in the south of the country. Neighboring Tajikistan’s economy found its only economic comparative advantage, in acting as a narco-traffic state for heroin or opium coming through from Afghanistan. The bizarre “Head of All Turkmen,” Saparmurat Niyazov, passed away in late 2006, replaced by a less eccentric but only slightly less repressive leader, a former dentist with the challenging name (at least for English speakers) of Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov.

Uzbekistan remains practically unreformed and mostly closed to the outside world, and Belarus, which never really wanted independence from the empire, given its close cultural and linguistic links to Russia, is alone in having retained a truly planned economy.

But it is Russia, of course, the former empire metropole, that remains the biggest question. With its eighty-eight regions and dozens of languages and ethnicities, Russia is still an empire in many ways, albeit a smaller one today. The biggest issue is what will happen with the country’s predominantly Muslim North Caucasus region. Russian spent billions to rebuild the Chechen capital, Grozny, but the trade-off was to hand power to Ramzan Kadyrov, the son of the country’s former separatist chief mufti. Kadyrov has an unbridled taste for luxury and excess, including expensive
cars and a personal zoo. He’s also accused of personal brutality, opponents and critics having disappeared or been killed in brazen ways, most notably the brave journalist Anna Politkovskaya and the fearless human rights defender Natalya Estimirova.

Ironically, Kadyrov has achieved a level of independence from Moscow that even former “real” separatists might envy, replete with the trappings of Sharia law. As long as Moscow keeps the cash flowing, Kadyrov keeps the Russian flag flying. The Kremlin, in most other ways, leaves its hands off Kadyrov to run Chechnya as he sees fit. Kadyrov has nonetheless made many enemies, and it remains to be seen how long he will hold on to power.

Meanwhile, the once-secular Chechen independence movement morphed—thanks in no small part to the brutality of Moscow’s Chechen campaigns—into a violent regionwide insurrection by varied Islamist radicals who want to set up a “caliphate” across the southern parts of Russia populated mostly by Muslims. The insurgency is an increasingly bloody one, and Moscow has paid billions to support regional governments there, including that of the handpicked Chechen leader Kadyrov and his personal militia—many of them former separatist fighters. It paid billions more to rebuild shattered Grozny. There is every chance the Russian public may grow tired of holding on to Chechnya and the broader region around it, whose population is growing at a much faster rate than the Slavic, Orthodox Christian part of the country. One recent survey found that nearly two-thirds of Slavic Russians no longer wanted the Muslim republics of the North Caucasus region to be a part of the Russian Federation.

The process of a further fragmentation of Russia itself is entirely possible, though few but the most addicted Russia watchers seem ready to consider the consequences, another symptom of the simple truth that the concept of empire—and life itself—are fleeting, we humans rarely able to react until after the facts have seared themselves into history.

Lawrence Scott Sheets
July 2011

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

For more than twenty years, so many people have contributed to making this book a reality, both consciously and casually, through their generosity, time, and patience.

First, there are those, described in the book—we traveled, reported, lived, celebrated, and mourned together—whose lives ended prematurely in reporting the events described herein. They were my friends. They include the late Adil Bunyatov, Farkhad Kerimov, Taras Protsyuk, and Adlan Khasanov, with whom I worked at Reuters. Galina Nizhelkskaya was not a reporter but a friend, and all of these brave individuals never wavered in their understanding of the dangers of living where they did and doing what they did, and the potential consequences—and paid the ultimate price far before their time.

My three younger sisters served as hands-off, no-pressure muse inspirationalists: Annie-Laurie Sheets Jankowski and her husband, Dr. Marcin Jankowski; Kristin Nicholson and her husband, Tom; and Valerie Robichaud and her husband, Dr. Jeffrey Robichaud; as well as my niece, Kristin-Annie Espinoza.

I am deeply grateful to Gillian MacKenzie of the Gillian MacKenzie Agency, who was absolutely unbridled in her belief, even when mine wavered.

Vanessa Mobley, my editor at Crown worked under great pressure
and offered constant reassurance and support, as did her assistant, Stephanie Chan.

Rachel Klayman of Crown understood from the start the time needed to complete the book.

Michigan State University and Dr. Sherman Garnett, Dr. Folke Lindahl and his wife, Dr. Oumatie Marajh, Dr. Michael Schechter, and Dr. Norman Graham allowed me a degree of freedom that gave me time, space, and support to think and write.

Author Thomas Goltz was good-humored with his five-a.m. phone calls to make sure I was up and working on the book; he was a well-needed war travel companion, possessing a keen eye as a brutally honest (even if rightfully opinionated) reader and adviser.

Dr. Ronald Suny of the University of Michigan provided companionship, support, and advice. Dr. Andrew March of Yale University provided guideposts on the nature of, among other things, Uzbekistan.

Thomas Dworzak of Magnum Photography offered great friendship, resilience, humor, help, and photo advice.

Dr. Frank Ochberg provided immense personal support, as did Dr. John Funkhouser and the entire Funkhouser clan: Andrea, Sarah, Lisa, and Peter Funkhouser.

Dr. Viktor Dmitriev and Mila Dmitriev helped in ways only they are capable of imagining, and supplied many details about their Leningrad lives that helped fill in missing fragments.

James Bettinger and Dawn Garcia of Stanford University were always there to help. Thomas Dumstorf, John Karren, Thomas Jackson, Ariela Shapiro, and Masha Savchuk generously offered their time to review the manuscript and offer words of encouragement.

Dr. Louise Arbour, Dr. Sabine Freizer, Alain Deletroz, Andrew Stroehlein, and Iskra Kirova of the International Crisis Group were gracious and patient through it all.

From National Public Radio I wish to especially thank Irina Mikhailova, Boris Ryzhak, Kevin Beesley, Ivan Watson, Michael Sullivan, Bob Duncan, Steve Inskeep, Renee Montagne, Martha Wexler, Melissa
Block, Lisa Simeone, Richard Gonzales, Michelle Keleman, Kitty Elsele, and Paul Brown.

Eteri Chkadua offered patience, humor, and insistence during the last difficult months of writing. Many friends contributed in all sorts of ways, from knowledge to wisdom to camaraderie and support, including John Pollack, Lana and Dr. Henry Pollack, Dr. Alexander Rondeli, Dr. Aslan Dukayev, Dr. Robert Parsons, Nino Kirtadze, Mika Khruashvili, Richard Giragosian, Esma Khunchulia, Mike Payne, Nestan Nejiradze, Ninka Nejiradze, Sergiy Karazy, Eve Elden, Ekaterina Kuba, Magdalena Frichova, Sophia Elza, Alexis Rowell, Liam McDowall, Nino Ivanishvili, Martin Nesirky, George (Zhorra) Vardzelashvili, Mark Mullen, Dato Chikhvishili, Margarita Antidze, Petre Mamradze, Karina Khodikyan, Khalid Askerov, Hugh Pope, Natalia Amirejibi, Tom de Waal, Michael Ochs, Lado Pochkhua, Hasmik Mkrtchyan, Victoria Belyavskaya, David Mikautadze, Jan Lopatka, Nino Maglakelidze, Shahin Hajiyev, Richard Wallis, Dr. Asim Mollzade, Ada Trapsh, Zurab Smyr, Helena Bedwell, Vanora Bennett, Manon L’Oiseau, Natalie Nougayrède, Boris Eisenbaum, Nana Talakvadze, Georgina Prodhan, Seda Muradyan, Hussniye Babaeva, Terezie Taubelova, James Hill, Magda Nowakowska, Matthew Collin, Varvara Pakhomenko, Arkady Ostrovsky, Sergei Lazaruk, Gini Sikes, Robert D. Kaplan, Misha Glenny, Robert Finn, James Weimann, Helena Bedwell, Nick Ivanishvili, Natia Koiava and Tea Koiava, Steve LeVine, and Elizabeth Eagen.

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