After a declaration of independence and the seizure military assets located in the self-proclaimed Republic of Ichkeria, Chechen influence in the Northern Caucuses region was rapidly growing. By the 1994 Russian leadership became very concerned about the situation when, in addition to the other issues, Dzhokhar Dudaev de-facto took control of the oil and gas pipelines. After a series of unsuccessful attempts by Yeltsyn and his government to reshuffle the situation it was decided to go for a limited armed action targeted upon the overthrow Dudaev at the hands of Russian-sponsored opposition. The opposition eventually failed and a large military operation by Russian forces was launched on 9 December 1994. From the first days, Russian troops, totally unprepared for the tough resistance encountered found themselves in a bloody fight against Dudaev's well-trained and well-armed militants. Grozny was the major objective as the Russian command considered that taking over the city would break Chechen resistance at once. To pave the way to the city the Russians had to secure Khankala airfield as it was the major aerial hub of the area. The Fight for Khankala became the first major engagement between Russian and Chechen forces. On 30 December 1994, Russian forces received orders to enter Grozny and take control of key objectives, eliminating the opposition. In the second half of 31 December, Russian armored convoys started to enter the city from four directions, what was to come next became the most horrible night in modern Russian military history. Battle for Grozny, Volume 1 is based on the numerous little known publications and veteran accounts from both sides, extensive pictorial and video footage, and focuses upon the reconstruction of events that happened prior to and during the New Year of 1994-1995. 80 b/w and colour photos, 5 maps, 21 colour profiles
