Salambek Naibovich Khadzhiyev (; 7 January 1941 – 2 March 2018) was a Soviet-Russian Chechen petrochemist, businessman and politician who was the first Chairman of the Government of National Revival of the Chechen Republic. He specialized in the production of low-pour, high-density petroleum fuels transformations of

hydrocarbon In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and Hydrophobe, hydrophobic; their odor is usually fain ...

s on

zeolite Zeolites are a group of several microporous, crystalline aluminosilicate minerals commonly used as commercial adsorbents and catalysts. They mainly consist of silicon, aluminium, oxygen, and have the general formula ･y where is either a meta ...

that contain catalysts. He was also the first and only Chechen to hold a ministerial position in 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 ...

. In 1991, he headed the Ministry of Chemical and Petrochemical Industry of the USSR. During the

First Chechen War The First Chechen War, also referred to as the First Russo-Chechen War, was a struggle for independence waged by the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria against the invading Russia, Russian Federation from 1994 to 1996. After a mutually agreed on treaty ...

in 1995 he was the chairman of the Government of the National Revival of

Chechnya Chechnya, officially the Chechen Republic, is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia. It is situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, between the Caspian Sea and Black Sea. The republic forms a part of the North Caucasian Federa ...

Biography

Khadzhiyev was born in the village of Shali,

Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic When the Soviet Union existed, different governments had ruled the northern Caucasus regions of Chechnya and Ingushetia. Within the Mountain Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic, later annexed into the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Repub ...

. He spent his childhood in the village of Rovnoye in the Dzhambul district of

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

, where he was deported with his family. He returned to his homeland in 1957, when the

Chechen-Ingush ASSR When the Soviet Union existed, different governments had ruled the northern Caucasus regions of Chechnya and Ingushetia. Within the Mountain Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic, later annexed into the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Repub ...

was restored. He graduated from the Grozny State Oil Technical University with a degree in oil and gas process in engineering. He worked at the Grozny Oil Research Institute (one of the leading in the USSR oil industry), where he rose from junior researcher to a director. In 1990 he was elected a deputy of the of the 9th convocation. In 1991, Khadzhiyev became the Minister of the Petrochemical Industry of the

, becoming the first Chechen in the USSR to hold a ministerial position. He was a member of scientific council and the Interdepartmental Council of the

USSR Academy of Sciences The Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union was the highest scientific institution of the Soviet Union from 1925 to 1991. It united the country's leading scientists and was subordinated directly to the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union (u ...

and a member of the State Committee for Science and Technology of the USSR on

petrochemistry Petrochemicals (sometimes abbreviated as petchems) are the chemical products obtained from petroleum by refining. Some chemical compounds made from petroleum are also obtained from other fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas, or renewable s ...

. He was a member of the editorial board of the journal "Chemistry and Technology of Fuel and Oils" and authored numerous scientific papers.

Chairman of the government of national revival of Chechnya

In 1995, during the First Chechen War, he headed the Government of the Provisional Council of the Chechen Republic. The appointment took place on 16 January, on the day of the televised address of the

Prime Minister of Russia The prime minister of the Russian Federation, also domestically stylized as the chairman of the government of the Russian Federation and widely recognized as the prime minister, is the head of government of Russia and the second highest ranking ...

Viktor Chernomyrdin Viktor Stepanovich Chernomyrdin (, ; 9 April 19383 November 2010) was a Soviet and Russian politician and businessman. He was the Minister of Gas Industry of the Soviet Union (13 February 1985 – 17 July 1989), after which he became first chairm ...

to the Russian people, in which he announced the intention of the federal leadership to form a capable government in

for a transitional period. According to other sources, he headed the Government of the National Revival of Chechnya on November 23, 1994. In March, Khadzhiev met with the president of Russia,

Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin (1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician and statesman who served as President of Russia from 1991 to 1999. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1961 to ...

, at his residence outside

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

in his capacity as head of a federal subject. In July 1995, he announced his resignation, which was regarded by the journalists of the ''

Kommersant (, , ''The Businessman'' or Commerce Man, often shortened to Ъ) is a nationally distributed daily newspaper published in Russia mostly devoted to politics and business. The TNS Media and NRS Russia certified July 2013 circulation of the daily ...

'' newspaper as the readiness of the federal authorities to sacrifice figures in anticipation of possible negotiations with the separatists of

Dzhokhar Dudayev Dzhokhar Musayevich Dudayev (born Dudin Musa-Khant Dzhokhar; 15 February 1944 – 21 April 1996) was a Chechen politician, statesman and military leader of the 1990s Chechen independence movement from Russia. He served as the first president o ...

. However, he resigned later on October 23, 1995. After being removed from this post, at the end of 1995, he was then appointed as the first deputy head of the territorial administration of federal executive bodies in the

Chechen Republic Chechnya, officially the Chechen Republic, is a republic of Russia. It is situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, between the Caspian Sea and Black Sea. The republic forms a part of the North Caucasian Federal District, and share ...

In Russia

In 1995, he was involved in the organization of the Southern Oil Company. In March 1996, Khadzhiyev participated in a meeting of the VIP club of the

Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation (RF CCI, ) is a non-governmental, non-profit organization that operates under the Russian Federation Law on Chambers of Commerce and Industry in the Russian Federation and the Chamber ...

as chairman of the State Committee for Industrial Policy. In 1996, Salambek Khadzhiev became a member of the board of directors of Ecotech Oil, a large trading company that supplies gasoline to the

Region and regions of

Central Russia Central Russia is, broadly, the various areas in European Russia. Historically, the area of Central Russia varied based on the purpose for which it is being used. It may, for example, refer to European Russia (except the North Caucasus and ...

, and then headed it. He is also the owner of 80 percent of the shares of this company. In April 2002, he sold 50 gas stations owned by the company to Slavneft.

Personal life and death

He was married to Svetlana Muslimovna Gairbekova and had 3 children: Leila, Aset and Bulat. He also has ten grandchildren. His sister, Tamara Khadzhieva, was the head of the Shali district branch of the United Russia party since its founding in 2002. In July 2004 she was killed by unknown perpetrators from gunshot wounds in her own house in Shali. Earlier in the same year, two close relatives of Salambek Khadzhiev, who were employees of the Shali District Department of Internal Affairs, were killed as well. He died after a severe long illness in a clinic in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

on March 2, 2018. He was buried in

, in his home city of Shali at a family cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khadzhiyev, Salambek 1941 births 2018 deaths 20th-century Russian chemists 21st-century Russian businesspeople People from Shalinsky District, Chechnya Corresponding Members of the USSR Academy of Sciences Full Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences Recipients of the Order of Honour (Russia) Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Chechen businesspeople Chechen politicians People's commissars and ministers of the Soviet Union Soviet chemists 20th-century Russian businesspeople