The article deals with the case of Chechen separatism, which resulted in the secession of the
Republic from Russia in 1991. The theoretical framework for this study is based on considering
secession as a dynamic process triggered by a shift in the perception of a cost-benefit equilibrium
regarding a possible attempt at secession. The second section of the article briefly analyzes
the most important structural prerequisites, which could have been conducive for Chechen
secessionism at the beginning of the 1990s. The last section explains the factors, which could have
been crucial in changing the initial calculation of a costs and benefits equilibrium regarding the
possible attempt at secession. Among the above mentioned factors, the rise of ethno-nationalism
and nationalist elites creating discourse justifying the secession of the Chechen Republic.
The role of the center-periphery relationship and the weakening position of the federal center
in Moscow are also considered in the article.