You arm-chair strategists/conspiracy theorists never fail to amaze me. Sure, the Russian government really wants Basaev to roam free able to strike at will (/SARCASM). Explain to me, oh great theorist, exactly why the Russians, who are worried about factionalism in the rest of the Russian Federation (Tatarstan, Kalmykia, Buryatia,etc.) would want to be seen as inept and unable to quash a mutinous republic? This sort of "logic" boggles the mind.
The war in the Caucasus is an important instrument of the Russian domestic policy. In some situations the unstable situation in the North Caucasus and the terrorism threat became a pretext for strengthening of the President’s powersand the competencies of the security services (which happened after the Dubrovka and Beslan attacks). The “Caucasus threat” is also used by the Kremlin propaganda for consolidating the society around the President as the only guarantor of safety. The Chechen conflict has also been used for satisfying the Russian army’s ambitions and improving their financial status.
The law enforcement agencies are interested in keeping the situation instable in North Caucasus, owing to which their influence in the country is strengthening. This also causes constant growth of the budget spending on military purposes (e.g. the outlays on the military in 2005 are supposed to be higher by 35% as compared to 2004) and provides additional chance of being promoted and making a career outside of the army. The war has also provided the military with the opportunity to do numerous illegal businesses, such as: trade in oil produced in Chechnya, robbing the civilian population, forcing out protection money (mainly at checkpoints and on roads) and trade in people.