ChechnyaKadyrov starts fifth term as Chechen Head, promises to defend residents’ rightsby Elizaveta Chukharova (Updated: 2 days ago )• 3 min readShare▲Chechen Head Ramzan Kadyrov at the ceremony marking the beginning of his fifth term. Photo: Grozny-inform.ru.Ramzan Kadyrov started his fifth term as Chechen Head on Monday, with the ceremony taking place in Grozny on his 50th birthday. After taking office for the fifth time, Kadyrov promised to ‘defend the Quran, the Constitutions of Russia and the Chechen Republic, and the rights of our residents to life and to a happy future for our children’. ‘This is my duty. This is my word. The word of Ramzan Kadyrov’, he said.Kadyrov’s promise to defend the rights of Chechens come against the backdrop of years of reports by Russian and international human rights organisations about violations in the republic. For example, in its latest World Report, published in 2026, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said that the Chechen authorities continued to persecute relatives of Kadyrov’s opponents in 2025. In 2026, the Memorial Human Rights Centre wrote about a new wave of raids, abductions and forced signing of contracts with the Russian Defence Ministry. Multiple human rights organisations have criticised the practice of torture and extrajudicial executions under Kadyrov’s rule in Chechnya. In September’s election, Kadyrov, who was nominated by the ruling United Russia party, officially received 99.85% of the vote, with turnout at 95.19%. A total of 830,690 people voted for him. The two other candidates — Ismail Denilkhanov of A Just Russia — For Truth, and Khalid Nakaev of the Communist Party — each received 0.05%. Kadyrov has ruled Chechnya since 2007. Electoral monitors and independent Russian media have widely criticised the September elections as being tightly controlled, with little legal opposition permitted. President Vladimir Putin, according to Kadyrov himself, was among the first to congratulate him. ‘Of course, he congratulated me. He wished me luck and happiness. He asked me to convey his gratitude to all the Chechen people’, Kadyrov said. This was Kadyrov’s fifth inauguration; the previous ceremonies in 2016 and 2021 also took place on 5 October, the Chechen leader’s birthday. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus congratulated him on his birthday on the day of the inauguration, and awarded him the Order of Glory and Honour, First Class. The order was established in 2004 and is awarded to state, religious and public figures for contributions including interfaith cooperation and the strengthening of peace and friendship between peoples. In his congratulatory message, Kirill described Kadyrov as a ‘strong-willed, determined and responsible leader, tirelessly caring for the region entrusted to your charge and its residents’. He separately highlighted the ‘good relations’ that had developed between the Chechen authorities and the Grozny Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church. The award came just two days after Kadyrov received another title — the rank of army general. On Saturday, Rosgvardiya (the Russian National Guard) director Viktor Zolotov presented Kadyrov, who has never served in the Russian Armed Forces, with gold shoulder boards and a maroon beret. The heads of neighbouring republics also travelled to the inauguration. Acting Head of Daghestan Fyodor Shchukin wished Kadyrov ‘good health, inexhaustible energy and success in his future work’, and described his election victory as ‘convincing evidence of popular support’. While the Head of Kabarda–Balkaria Kazbek Kokov called Kadyrov his ‘dear brother and colleague’, saying that he was ‘confidently leading his people along the path of development and creation’, and wished him ‘good health and many years of productive work’. Kadyrov also received congratulatory telegrams from Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Senate (upper house of Russia’s Parliament) chair Valentina Matviyenko, State Duma (lower house of Russia’s Parliament) speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, Kremlin chief of staff Anton Vaino, Belarusian President Aliaksandr Lukashenka, and other Russian officials. Liza was born and raised in Vladikavkaz and now lives in Prague. She has previously worked for RFE/RL, ASTRA, Belsat, and others. She is currently completing her PhD in German and Slavic Studies at Charles University in Prague, specialising in the study of military and inter-ethnic conflicts in the North Caucasus. In her free time, Liza shoots feature films, writes about cinema, and travels — she has visited exactly 50 countries and is not going to stop there.