Cossacks' revival to help Russia's revival - authoritative opinion

A law on the Cossacks is "necessary not only for revival of the Cossacks but also for revival of Russia," Gennady Troshev, an aide to the Russian President on the Cossack issue, told RIA Novosti on Saturday when commenting on the forthcoming consideration of the draft law in the State Duma.

On Saturday, Troshev arrived in Vladikavkaz (the capital city of Northern Ossetia, a constituent republic in the Russian Federation) on an inspection visit.

According to the presidential aide, the role played by the Cossacks of Southern Russia in consolidating Russian statehood and stability in the region is exceptionally significant due to the nature and history of the Cossacks as an institution set up specifically to serve as a defender and guarantor of Russian interests on the country's borders.

"In the Caucasus, the Cossacks always lived in friendship with the highlanders; kinship ties and brotherhood traditionally linked them with each other. This tradition of unity of all the peoples living in the area will revive whatever the odds," Gennady Troshev said.

"Today, there are people and non-governmental organisations in the North Caucasus set to work hard to bring the Russian-speaking population and, specifically, the Cossacks back to southern Russia, primarily, to the long-suffering Chechnya, to ensure its ultimate revival," emphasised the presidential aide.