Akhsarbek Khadzhimurzayevich Galazov (; ; October 15, 1929 – April 10, 2013) was a Russian scientist and politician. Galazov was born in Pravoberezhny District, at the time part of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. He served as president of the

Republic of North Ossetia–Alania A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a state in which political power rests with the public (people), typically through their representatives—in contrast to a monarchy. Although a ...

(

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

) from 1994 until 1998. In 1938 his father Hadzhimurza Ilyasovich was illegally detained by the Soviet government and several years later died in prison.

Education and Employment

In 1952, he graduated from the State Pedagogical Institute of North Ossetia. From 1952-1958 he worked as a teacher of Russian language and literature and was director of studies at Humalagskoy Secondary School. From 1958 to 1959 he was superintendent of schools of the Ministry of Education of the Soviet Socialist Republic of North Ossetia. From 1959-1960 he served as Director of the Institute of Teachers. From 1961 to 1975 he was Minister of Education of North Ossetia. From 1976 to 1990 he was Rector of North Ossetian State University. From 1990-1991 he was a member of the Central Committee of the CPSU. Elected deputy of the RSFSR.

Political Activity

During the armed conflict in

South Ossetia South Ossetia, officially the Republic of South Ossetia or the State of Alania, is a landlocked country in the South Caucasus with International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, partial diplomatic recognition. It has an offici ...

following the collapse of the Soviet Union, he authorized the delivery of humanitarian aid, and negotiated for the peaceful settlement of the situation in South Ossetia. He opposed the liberation of North Ossetia from Russia, but at the same time affirmed the possibility of its association with South Ossetia and the consequential creation of a new state,

Alania Alania was a medieval kingdom of the Iranian Alans ( Proto-Ossetians) that flourished between the 9th–13th centuries in the Northern Caucasus, roughly in the location of the latter-day Circassia, Chechnya, Ingushetia, and modern North Ossetia ...

. In November 1993, he was nominated for the

Federation Council The Federation Council, unofficially Senate, is the upper house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, with the lower house being the State Duma. It was established by the Constitution of the Russian Federation in 1993. Each of the 89 federal s ...

. In the elections he ran as an

independent candidate An independent politician or non-affiliated politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicians have polit ...

. The turnout was 61.26% of registered voters. Galázov won with 53.54% of the vote. In January 1994, he was elected the first president of the Republic of North Ossetia and held the position until 1998.

References

1929 births 2013 deaths Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Ossetian politicians Heads of North Ossetia–Alania Academic staff of North Ossetian State University Members of the Central Committee of the 28th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union {{Russia-politician-stub