After the collapse of the USSR in 1991 the Russian state conducted two bloody wars against the small nation of Chechnya. The first, from 1994-6, ended with a peace treaty following the defeat of Russia’s attempt to smash the Chechen national movement. The second, which began with a Russian invasion after October 1999 and ended with Russia declaring the victory of its “counter terrorism operation” in 2009, facilitated Vladimir Putin’s rise to power and was important to consolidating his rule.