Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, the Kremlin’s representative in Ingushetia, who mistakenly calls himself the head of the republic, announced his decision to resign yesterday. More precisely, Yevkurov, whose statement yesterday was made in a colonial spirit, claiming that all the achievements of the republic during his rule were made «thanks to the federal center,» couldn’t even resign himself and announced that he had appealed to the Kremlin’s owner, Putin, to be relieved of his position ahead of schedule. It is still unknown how the owner will decide, so it cannot be ruled out that this «patriot of Great Russia» will remain in his position.
However, it is more likely that the owner will grant the request of his subordinate, and he himself gave the reasons for this in his speech. He said that the Ingush society has lost its unity under his rule, although, as commentators joke these days, it is united as never before in opposition to this Moscow representative.
It is difficult to say whether yesterday’s decision of the paratrooper was an initiative of the Kremlin or his own will. In favor of the latter, it should be noted that it was announced precisely on the 10th anniversary of the assassination attempt on his life, which he miraculously survived. Considering that not long ago he admitted to wanting to shoot 5-10 thousand of his fellow protesters, it could be a simple mental breakdown — the job is nerve-wracking. One thing is for sure, Yevkurov’s power has been morally destroyed by the nationwide resistance of the Ingush people to his puppet policy — in the eyes of the Ingush people, but possibly also in the eyes of the Kremlin.
What will be the policy towards the rebellious republic if they agree to meet Yevkurov’s demand? Various versions are circulating among numerous «insiders» and «analysts» — from the appointment of a new representative in Ingushetia who is even more «Russian» than Yevkurov, similar to Vasilyev in Dagestan, to a radical restructuring of the administrative map of the North Caucasus, to which this could be a prologue. In the latter case, options for merging Ingushetia with Chechnya and even Dagestan under the rule of Ramzan Kadyrov are being discussed, which in our opinion is based more on understandable fears of Ingush society, since such a significant strengthening of one of the local players is not within the Kremlin’s rules.
In this sense, it is significant that almost none of the Ingush people, who are almost unanimous in their joy over Yevkurov’s resignation, believe that anything will change for the better after it. This indicates the complete disillusionment of the inhabitants of Ingushetia (as well as of many other regions of the «federation») with the Kremlin’s ability to make decisions in the interests of citizens and society, which was fully demonstrated by the behavior of the Russian authorities towards the Ingush during their protests — from Yevkurov’s threats to General Matovnikov’s rude manner of communication.
Well, it is obvious that the Ingush people are now at the beginning of the struggle for the right to determine the future of their republic, their country. They can’t expect any improvements from the Kremlin. But at least in the last few months, they have clearly demonstrated that they no longer rely on the Kremlin and its representatives, and that they are the civil society that everyone will have to deal with.