The leader of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, has called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “to call Russian President Vladimir Putin and apologise”.

Addressing assembled servicemen in central Grozny, Kadyrov demanded that Ukrainian president Zelensky apologises to Putin. He said:

Taking this opportunity, I want to give advice to the current President Zelensky so that he calls our President, Supreme Commander Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, and apologizes for not doing so sooner.https://zero.pindula.co.zw/market/featured/?limit=4

Do it in order to save Ukraine. Ask for forgiveness and agree to all the conditions that Russia puts forward. This will be the most correct and patriotic step for him.

According to Russia Today, thousands of Chechens are willing to offer assistance to the Russian military.

On Friday, 12 000 local volunteers gathered on the central square of the regional capital, Grozny.

Kadyrov said the rally was organised in order to show their support for Russia and their readiness to aid its objectives.

He said no troops would be deployed until the “Supreme Commander in Chief” Putin gave the go-ahead.

Chechnya is a constituent republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus in Eastern Europe, close to the Caspian Sea.

The country gained de facto independence as the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria following the First Chechen War of 1994–1996 with Russia.

However, Chechnya remained de jure a part of The Russian Federation.

Russia invaded Ukraine on Thursday, 24 February after Putin declared in a pre-dawn TV address that Russia could not feel “safe, develop and exist” because of the threat reportedly posed by its neighbour of 44 million people.