He is quite arguably the scariest man on Earth.
Vladimir Putin, the prime minister and soon-to-be president of Russia (again), was awarded this year’s Confucius Peace Prize by a Chinese committee.
For what, you ask? Starting a war.
Yes, it is now possible to win peace prizes for either doing nothing at all, in the case of President Barack Obama, or for performing the exact opposite act of peace — war.
Here’s a brief history lesson on the Russian conflict in Chechnya. Chechnya is classified as a “republic within the Russian Federation,” according to the BBC. The Chechens were granted some autonomy in 1996 but are still not independent from Russia, despite having their own government.
Chechens are very different from Russians, the main difference being most Chechens are Muslim and most Russians are not. Chechnya has been fighting for a long time for independence either from the old Russian Empire, the Soviet Union or the new Russian Federation.
Simply, it’s the Wild West. Chechen terrorists move into Russia and cause trouble, and the Russians respond by sending troops back into Chechnya.
Lots of violence, lots of unrest.
However, Russia still likes to hold onto Chechnya because it’s located in the Caucasus mountains and is rich in one natural resource — oil.
Chechnya is rich in oil and, despite Chechen terrorists attacking Russians, Russia won’t let them be independent.
In 2002, Chechen terrorists took a large number of hostages at a Moscow theatre. Russian authorities pumped an unknown gas into the building, and more than 120 hostages died.
Don’t think the Russians are innocent either; the second war they started with Chechnya in 1999 is believed to have left anywhere from 25,000 to 50,000 Chechens dead, mostly civilians.
To put this into perspective for an average American, this is like giving Obama the peace prize for starting a war with Utah. Chechnya is a Russian internal matter, not a clear-cut international dispute.
Putin’s efforts at establishing peace in the region show a difference in ideology between Americans and old Soviets pretending to take part in a free society. Americans would argue peace is achieved through freedom, while Soviets would argue that peace is achieved through oppression.
Putin is old school. His first job out of college was with the KGB, the Soviet equivalent to the CIA. He is a power hungry old communist who will not just slip into the history books when his tenure is up. He achieves peace with an iron fist.
New York Times op-ed contributor Valery Panyushkin wrote that, during her time in Russia, she noticed her license plate was removed from her car. This meant she was being followed by Russian security forces who, under Putin, have allegedly been responsible for the disappearances and deaths of many journalists who have not been so kind in their publications about his government.
Putin was president from 2000 to 2008 and has been prime minister since. He is up for reelection (if you can even call it that) and will undoubtedly win. Russia prevents a certain number of consecutive terms as president, but not a total number of terms, therefore making him eligible to run again.
Bottom line, Putin is the antithesis of peace. It just goes to show you that the Russian and Chinese ways of achieving peace are still through violence and fear, even toward their own citizens.
America is not perfect, but I sure am glad I’m not Russian.
Parker Cramer is a 20-year-old political science junior from Houston. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_pcramer.