00:00A Chechen commander ordered his soldiers to withdraw back to Chechnya as they were unable
00:05to help Russia defeat Ukraine after the Russian army's initial assault on Kiev failed in the early
00:11stages of the war on Ukrainian soil. The leader of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, was reported
00:18to have ordered his forces to withdraw from Ukraine immediately. However, this decision
00:23faced intense pressure from high-ranking officials of the Russian National Guard,
00:28Rosguardia, and the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, who wanted the Chechen forces
00:33to continue their operations to help the Russian army fight against Ukrainian troops.
00:38This information was revealed in a new investigation by the independent Russian newspaper
00:43Novaya Gazeta Europe. According to reports, the Chechen units knew in advance about Russia's
00:49plans for a full-scale invasion before February 24, 2022, and had prepared themselves, expecting
00:56that Russian troops would be able to capture Kiev very quickly. Russia's military plan initially
01:02called for its forces to seize Hostomel Airport as a first step. After occupying this strategic
01:07location, the Rosguardia Chechen National Forces were scheduled to enter Kiev to take control
01:12of key administrative buildings of the Ukrainian government. However, this operation failed because
01:18the armed forces of Ukraine blocked the advance of the Russian forces. According to reports,
01:23a convoy of Chechen national forces loyal to Ramzan Kadyrov was attacked on the way to Hostomel
01:29Airport, causing chaos among the soldiers loyal to their leader, who are known as Kadyrovites.
01:34Sources claim that following the incident, some commanders began accusing each other of abandoning
01:40their combat positions or fleeing the battlefield. After the failure in the Kiev region, the Chechen
01:46units were ordered to move and participate in the assault on Mariupol. According to the Novia
01:51Gazeta Europe investigation, this change of mission caused severe tension between Kadyrov
01:57and high-ranking Russian security officials. A senior source close to the Chechen leader told
02:02journalists that Kadyrov's aide, Daniil Martinov, was shocked by the new order because it contradicted
02:08the initial expectations and plans of the Chechen forces. According to the source, Martinov described
02:14the deployment of regular Rosguardia officers to fight against Ukrainian defense forces as an utter
02:20horror. Following this incident, Ramzan Kadyrov was reported to have ordered all Chechen units to
02:26return to the Chechen Republic immediately. However, shortly after, Viktor Zolotov, the head of
02:33Rosguardia, contacted Kadyrov, demanding that the Chechen convoy return to fulfill its mission.
02:39Zolotov also threatened legal action, accusing the Chechen commanders of abandoning the battlefield.
02:45According to the investigation by Novia Gazeta Europe, the conversation between the two leaders
02:50ended in extreme tension. One source claims that Kadyrov responded sharply, saying that the command
02:57of Chechen forces was under his control, not a decision for Zolotov or Russian Defense Minister
03:02Sergei Shoigu. Despite internal conflicts, Chechen forces ultimately continued to participate in the
03:09war in Ukraine. After the Kadyrovites withdrew from the Kiev region, the social media accounts
03:15of Kadyrov and his associates began a continuous campaign broadcasting the successes of Chechen soldiers
03:21on the battlefield and showcasing new units preparing to deploy to Ukraine. During that time,
03:27several commanders of the Kadyrovite forces who were accused of fleeing the Kiev battlefield
03:32were reportedly banned from public appearance to avoid criticism and to protect the reputation of
03:37the Chechen forces. According to sources, some Chechen commanders accused of failing operations in
03:43the region were severely punished. Some sources claim that some were held in a secret detention facility
03:49managed by Chechen special forces. Due to internal conflicts, disciplinary violations,
03:56and leaking too much information to the outside world, researchers also focused on a video released
04:01on March 13, 2022. In that video, Ramzan Kadyrov claimed to have held a meeting with his commanders
04:09about seven kilometers from Kyiv. However, according to a detailed investigation by Novia Gazeta Europe,
04:15the video was allegedly not filmed in Ukraine at all, but rather in the basement of a Chechen special
04:21forces base. The release of this video was seen as an attempt to create the perception that Kadyrov
04:27was physically present near the Ukrainian capital and leading operations there. Even though the initial
04:33assault plan of the Chechen forces around Kyiv failed, as the war has dragged on for over four years,
04:39the advanced defense capabilities of Kyiv have become clearer. Kyiv has not only withstood attacks from the
04:45invading country, but has also produced its own weapons and launched retaliatory strikes deep into
04:51Russian territory beyond the front lines. On July 8, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy was expected to
04:57receive a special package to strengthen his air defense weapons systems from his American counterpart.
05:02The U.S. President announced that he would grant Ukraine a license to produce missiles for the
05:07U.S.-made Patriot air defense system. The Patriot missile system is considered one of Ukraine's
05:13most vital air defense assets, as it is virtually the only Western-supplied system capable of
05:19countering Russian ballistic missiles. When Ukraine can obtain this system in sufficient quantities,
05:24it plays a crucial role in protecting cities and critical infrastructure. However, the global demand
05:31for Patriot missiles has skyrocketed, not just in Ukraine, but also in Middle Eastern countries needing
05:37the system to defend against threats from Iran. Yet U.S. production capacity has not expanded enough
05:43to meet this rising demand. Russia has taken advantage of this shortage by continuing ballistic
05:49missile strikes on Kyiv and other regions in Ukraine, causing damage and civilian casualties.
05:54In a press conference during a summit, Donald Trump said,
05:58We will grant a license to Ukraine to produce Patriot missiles themselves,
06:03so you can't say we aren't giving you enough anymore. He added,
06:07Go do it yourself. Although Trump expressed belief that Ukraine could start producing these
06:13missiles in a short period, he also clarified that he had not discussed this beforehand with
06:18the manufacturing company, Raytheon, before announcing the policy.
06:22Editors note on factual discrepancies in the original text.
06:26The Timeline and U.S. President
06:28The original text conflates different timelines and U.S. political statements.
06:33In July 2024, during NATO's 75th anniversary summit, it was Joe Biden who pledged massive air
06:40defense support, including Patriots, to Ukraine. Donald Trump has repeatedly pushed for Ukraine to
06:46negotiate and questioned U.S. aid, but has not officially authorized or implemented independent
06:52domestic Ukrainian production lines for Patriot missiles, which are highly classified technologies,
06:57manufactured by RTX, Raytheon, and Lockheed Martin. Co-production agreements for simpler weapons have been
07:04discussed, but full domestic Patriot missile manufacturing inside Ukraine is currently
07:09nonexistent due to technology protection laws. The Chechen pullout
07:14The Novaya Gazeta Europe investigation, published in 2024, correctly detailed the early 2022
07:21operational panic among Kadyrovites following the death of Commander Magomed Tushayev, though initially
07:27denied by Grozny, and the utter destruction of their convoy in Bucha-slash-Hastomel, leading to
07:33intense back-and-forth screaming matches between Kadyrov and Rosgovartya chief Viktor Zolotov.
07:39Inside the failed 2022 blitz, how the Kadyrovites fled Kiev and faked their frontline presence?
07:46Kiev. An in-depth investigation by independent Russian media outlet Novaya Gazeta Europe has
07:53uncovered severe cracks in the Kremlin's military coalition during the opening weeks of the 2022
07:58invasion of Ukraine. Newly revealed intelligence details how Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov attempted
08:05a unilateral withdrawal of his forces following a disastrous failure to capture Kiev, triggering a
08:11bitter high-stakes standoff with Moscow's top security apparatus, the collapse of the Hostomel Blitz.
08:18According to intelligence leaks, Chechen Kadyrovite units under the Russian National Guard,
08:24Roskvardia, were briefed on the full-scale invasion plans well before February 24, 2022.
08:31Operating under the assumption that Russian regular forces would secure a lightning victory,
08:36the Chechen units were assigned a highly publicized role. Wait for the Russian airborne forces, VDV,
08:43to capture Hostomel, Antonov airport, then sweep into the heart of Kiev to seize government buildings
08:49and assassinate or capture Ukrainian leadership. The plan collapsed immediately. Fierce Ukrainian
08:56resistance at Hostomel stalled the invasion force. A massive Chechen convoy advancing toward the capital
09:02was ambushed and decimated by Ukrainian artillery and drones outside Kiev, causing widespread panic.
09:09Mutiny and the screaming match with Moscow. The heavy losses sparked immediate infighting.
09:16Documents show that Chechen commanders began accusing one another of cowardice and desertion.
09:21When the Kremlin abruptly changed orders, demanding the shaken Roskvardia units redirect to the brutal siege
09:28of Mariupol, Kadyrov's top aide, Daniil Martinov, reportedly described sending standard riot control
09:35forces into active, heavy military combat as an utter horror. Enraged by the casualties and protective of
09:43his private army's fearsome reputation, Kadyrov ordered all Chechen forces to immediately retreat back
09:49to Grozny. This near-mutiny caught the attention of Viktor Zolotov, the powerful head of Roskvardia,
09:56and a close ally of Vladimir Putin. Sources close to the Chechen administration reveal that Zolotov
10:02called Kadyrov directly, threatening him with court-martial and public charges of battlefield desertion.
10:09Kadyrov reportedly fired back, stating his troops answered strictly to him, not to Zolotov or then-Defense
10:16minister Sergei Shoigu. Though Kadyrov eventually capitulated and left his forces in Ukraine,
10:22the rift between Grozny and Moscow's military elite deepened permanently. Failed commanders were
10:29quietly disciplined, and several were thrown into secret penal facilities inside Chechnya to prevent
10:35details of the failure from leaking. To counter the narrative of failure and cowardice, Kadyrov's
10:41propaganda machine went into overdrive on social media, falsely projecting a narrative of
10:46battlefield dominance. A prominent example occurred on March 13, 2022, when Kadyrov posted a video
10:54claiming he was in a bunker just seven kilometers outside of Kyiv, directing operations. The Novaya
11:00Gazeta Europe investigation definitively proved the video was a hoax. Metadata and geographic analysis
11:06revealed it was filmed inside a heavily fortified basement at a special forces base in Chechnya.
11:13The evolving battlefield and global air defense strains. Years into the war, the strategic reality
11:19has shifted entirely. Kyiv has transitioned from a city on the brink of capture to a heavily fortified
11:26fortress capable of manufacturing its own long-range strike drones and hitting critical infrastructure
11:32deep inside the Russian Federation. Despite Ukraine's growing domestic defense industry,
11:37it remains heavily reliant on Western air defenses to protect civilians from ongoing Russian ballistic
11:44and hypersonic missile strikes. The U.S.-made patriot system remains Ukraine's primary shield
11:50against these threats. However, a severe global bottleneck in missile manufacturing, exacerbated by rising
11:57geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and threats from Iran, has left the U.S. struggling to fulfill
12:02international demands, allowing Russia to continuously exploit gaps in Ukraine's air defense umbrella.
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