Vendettas.

The article discusses the war in Chechnya, Russia as of February 20, 1995. Chechen's strengths and weaknesses in this conflict are rooted in an anchronistic tribal structure that Soviet rule and even Joseph Stalin's mass deportations failed to eradicate. The Russian government has shown a chilling contempt not just for civilized behavior but for essential standards of truthfulness toward the Western countries with which it wishes to be on friendly terms. It is concluded in the article that the war in Chechnya has become a crucial test case for Russia and the world.