Republic of Kalmykia

My dream is to turn Kalmykia into a republic in which citizens are proud to live just as in America, England, Japan or France.

We must do everything we can to ensure that our children can say with pride: “I live in Kalmykia”. Everyone must begin to think of his or herself as a resident of Kalmykia first, and only then a Chechen, Darghin, Russian, Kalmyk or Ukrainian. Your little homeland, the land on which you live, comes first; the rest follow. My cherished dream is to see Kalmykia blossom, just as the clairvoyant Vanga predicted.

Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, President of Kalmykia