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IIRC, Chechnya had no economy without oil. Ukraine is a software center and back office to many Western companies. In other words, this is a well-educated population, with the resourcefulness of a capable and skilled people. In some ways, they are *too* civilized, which makes me wonder about their ability to hold out, in pure motivational terms. That may be why both Putin and Milley thought they would fold immediately. So you never know. Everyone, both pro and con, is groping in the dark.

Ukraine is also much,much bigger than Chechnya. If the Ukies keep fighting, the body count for Russia will be much higher. That could make a difference. Then, there is the historic relationship between Poland and Ukraine. The Poles and Russians have fought over Ukraine for centuries, and it continues today. The Chechens didn't have much foreign support, and I suspect that W. Bush agreed to stop supporting Chechen independence in exchange for Putin's cooperation in other areas. This looks much different now.

“The Chechens didn’t have much foreign support...”

Massacring scores of schoolchildren at Beslan didn’t help their cause any.