Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said on Monday that he had appointed his 20-year-old son, Akhmat Kadyrov, as acting deputy prime minister of the republic.
Akhmat Kadyrov will retain his post as Chechnya’s physical culture and sports minister, a post he assumed in 2024 at the age of 18. He has also held the role of regional youth affairs minister since the winter of 2024.
Kadyrov also said he appointed Akhmed Dudayev, Chechnya’s national policy, external relations, press and information minister, as acting deputy prime minister.
Akhmat Kadyrov’s appointment is not the first time that Ramzan Kadyrov has promoted one of his children to an official role.
Akhmat Kadyrov’s younger brother Adam Kadyrov, 18, has assumed at least seven official positions in the past two years. He was first appointed as his father’s head of security in 2023, the same year he gained notoriety for assaulting a teenage prisoner accused of burning the Quran.
Ramzan Kadyrov, 49, has ruled Chechnya with sweeping autonomy since 2007 in exchange for loyalty to the Kremlin. Exiled media outlets have documented the family’s lavish lifestyle, including fleets of luxury cars, expensive watches and extravagant weddings.
Akhmat Kadyrov’s latest promotion comes amid renewed speculation about his father’s health.
The exiled news website Novaya Gazeta Europe reported in 2024 that Kadyrov suffers from a serious illness, possibly pancreatic necrosis, while Kremlin PR specialists were said to be working to conceal his condition.
Last week, the outlet reported that Kadyrov was urgently hospitalized in Moscow on the eve of the annual State Council meeting chaired by President Vladimir Putin on Dec. 25, citing an unidentified source close to the Chechen leader.
"They barely revived him in Moscow, after which he returned home and has not appeared in public since," Novaya Gazeta quoted its source as saying.
Kadyrov has dismissed the reports of his ill health.
On Saturday, Kadyrov’s official Telegram channel published video footage showing him attending the opening of an Islamic school. In the footage, Kadyrov does not speak and is seen using a walking stick.
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