Long before Russia invaded Ukraine, Ramzan Kadyrov, whose father was a staunch supporter of separatist fighters in Chechnya before joining the Kremlin, urged Moscow to “take back Ukraine” and “liberate” the Ukrainian people. . Mr. Kadyrov, who maintains a high profile on social media, posted a photo of himself at a gas station on Monday, which he claimed was taken outside the besieged city of Mariupol. He was seen sitting on his knees on a prayer mat, with a machine gun leaning close. The sign on the pump on the back, however, read “Pulsar,” the trademark of Russia’s state-owned oil company Rosneft. Rosneft has no service stations in Ukraine. The photo marks Mr Kadyrov’s second attempt to seek glory by appearing to have taken up arms in the war. In a separate incident, after a select force of internal troops was sent from Chechnya out of Mariupol, Kadyrov posted a video that allegedly showed him meeting the troops. However, he was seen hosting a Russian official in Grozny on the same day, which would make a visit to the front line almost impossible. Mr Kadyrov, who has been accused of overseeing extrajudicial killings and torture, has long struggled to wield considerable influence in Russian politics despite his lack of formal authority. On Wednesday, it publicly downgraded Russia’s official negotiating position. Sitting in his luxurious office, Kadyrov recorded a video statement targeting Vladimir Medinsky, Russia’s chief negotiator in Ukraine, for expressing compromise in talks with Kiev’s envoys in Istanbul on Tuesday.
