NewsKadyrov's 'Cyberbeast': Chechen leader claims Tesla with turret

Kadyrov's 'Cyberbeast': Chechen leader claims Tesla with turret

Elon Musk had allegedly given the leader of Chechnya a Tesla with a gun turret.
Elon Musk had allegedly given the leader of Chechnya a Tesla with a gun turret.
Images source: © Getty Images | Bloomberg
Agnieszka Zielińska

18 August 2024 16:01

Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Chechnya, claims he has received a Tesla with a gun turret. "We received a Tesla Cybertruck from the respected Elon Musk," he wrote on Telegram on Saturday. "I was happy to test the new technology and personally saw that it is not by chance that it is called the 'Cyberbeast,'" he said.

Much of the information reported by Russian media or government representatives is propaganda. Such reports are part of the Russian Federation's information warfare.

Kadyrov posted a video of driving the vehicle with a gun turret around his presidential palace.

"I was happy to test the new technology and personally saw that it is not by chance that it is called the 'Cyberbeast.' A real invulnerable and fast animal" added the Chechen ally of Vladimir Putin. He also announced that the car "will soon be sent" to the battlefield in Ukraine.

"I am sure that this ‘beast’ will be of great use to our soldiers," he emphasised.

Putin's man in Chechnya

Kadyrov thanked Tesla owner Elon Musk and invited the billionaire to visit Russia. Politico contacted Tesla but did not receive a comment from the company.

Kadyrov is considered Putin's man in Chechnya. He headed the regional campaign headquarters in the Russian presidential elections in March 2004.

In May 2004, he was appointed deputy prime minister and effectively led the government in Chechnya. In February 2006, he was elected chairman of the republican branch of the United Russia Party, currently the largest political party in Chechnya and Russia.

According to the international association "Memorial," torture, political murders, and human rights violations still occur in Chechnya, and the overall situation can be described as "horrific." Centre workers claim that Russian federal authorities unofficially tolerate these practices.

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