Kamalov: in Dagestan, Cossacks are cultural phenomenon
In Dagestan, Cossacks have ever been, above all, a binding link between all nationalities; it was stated by Zirkula Ilyasov, First Deputy Minister for National Policy, Religion Matters and Foreign Relations of Dagestan. Enver Kisriev, a researcher of the Caucasian, believes that there is no serious conflict between Dagestanis and Cossacks in the republic; while Hadjimurat Kamalov, founder of the newspaper "Chernovik", confirms this idea and indicates that local Cossacks have become more a cultural phenomenon than a military force.