Caucasus experts explain reasons for Ramzan Kadyrov's acute reaction to US sanctions

Ramzan Kadyrov was offended that the United States imposed sanctions not only against him, but also against his family members. This opinion was voiced by Mikhail Roschin, an expert on the Caucasus, and Ruslan Kutaev, the president of the Assembly of Caucasian Nations. Mass actions in support of the leader of Chechnya were organized by Ramzan Kadyrov's subordinates, who wanted to show their loyalty to the leader of Chechnya, said Professor Alexei Malashenko.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the authorities of Chechnya launched a flash mob on social networks in support of Ramzan Kadyrov. Directors of public sector institutions threat their employees with dismissals and force them to register in social networks and post photos with the hashtag #WeAreFamilyofKRA.

The actions in support of Ramzan Kadyrov are designed to impress citizens of Russia, not the US, suggests Mikhail Roschin, an expert on the Caucasus. According to him, the US sanctions are dangerous for Ramzan Kadyrov in the long term, because "after he loses power, it will not be very safe for him and his family members to stay in Russia."

Meanwhile, Ruslan Kutaev believes that the idea of holding mass actions does not come from the leader of Chechnya himself, but from his subordinates, who decided to show their loyalty to Ramzan Kadyrov.

In Chechnya, any excuse is used to bring public sector employees in the streets to express their loyalty to the authorities, notes Alexei Malashenko, the head of research at the "Dialogue of Civilizations" Institute. "The problem is that public sector employees depend on the leader of the republic and are afraid of punishment. And when Ramzan Kadyrov faces real problems, people are unlikely to come out to support him," the expert said.

According to him, Ramzan Kadyrov does not consider the US sanctions as a threat to his power.