Kadyrov preparing to hand over power - Media reveal his potential successor

Lifestyle changes

Since early February, Kadyrov has significantly changed his lifestyle. Sources say he now regularly spends time at the private Aymed clinic and occasionally stays overnight under medical supervision.

He travels in his own motorcade mostly only in Grozny and uses a medical helicopter for regional travel.

His official duties have been largely reduced to social media posts, managed by his press service. Public appearances and ceremonial functions have increasingly been delegated to Chechen Prime Minister Magomed Daudov.

Kadyrov also skipped several high-profile events in recent months, including:

• The ceremony of transferring the title of Cultural Capital of Russia to Grozny

• The Small Homeland - Strength of Russia forum

Notably, he was absent from celebrations marking Chechnya’s Constitution Day and did not deliver his traditional televised address for Eid al-Fitr, breaking a long-standing tradition during his rule.

Who might replace him

Kadyrov has 14 children, six of whom are adults. Only two have been visible in his future plans:

• Aishat, 26, his eldest daughter

• Adam, 17, his son

Aishat was the first child of Kadyrov to start a business and build a career in the civil service. She was followed by other children of the Chechen leader. At the same time, Aishat remains the only one who realized herself as a businesswoman, bureaucrat, and regional politician.

However, Novaya Gazeta Europe reports that Kadyrov is focusing on Adam as his successor. He is often described as a young copy of Ramzan in Chechnya.

A key signal of Kadyrov's changing priorities was the unexpected resignation of his daughter Aishat from the post of deputy prime minister, accompanied by her two sisters' exit from government roles.

Kadyrov’s plan

As Novaya Gazeta Europe explains, Kadyrov cannot amend the Russian Constitution, which does not allow the transfer of power to his sons due to their young age.

In 2023, when Kadyrov’s illness began a countdown for him, the question of Chechnya’s future governance arose. According to sources, it was then that a plan started forming within the family and close circle. As of February 2025, the outlines of that plan are becoming more evident. In general, Kadyrov’s power has always rested on three pillars:

• endless and uncontrolled federal funding;

• armed structures completely loyal to him, used to control the Chechen population;

• immunity from criminal prosecution for himself and his entourage, sanctioned by Vladimir Putin.

Kadyrov’s task is to attempt to restructure the foundation of his power. This involves maintaining control over the security forces in the hands of his family, as well as over business assets spanning all sectors of Chechnya’s economy.

Another key element of the plan is to obtain personal guarantees for his children from Russia’s President. Without such guarantees, the plan has no chance of success, so Kadyrov began seeking them back in 2023 by introducing his children to Putin.

"If this plan comes to life, any person appointed head of the republic who is not from the family will find themselves in a position where their actual power is limited... As a result, they will have to reckon with the true holders of power in Chechnya - Kadyrov’s successors and the Chechen clans standing behind them," Novaya Gazeta Europe writes.

Kadyrov’s illness

In 2023, various sources, including Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence, reported Kadyrov’s critical condition. In response, the Chechen leader’s press service published a video showing him walking in a park, although it was unclear when it was filmed.

Tumso Abdurakhmanov, in particular, claimed that Kadyrov’s kidneys might be failing and that "dialysis is not helping."

More about who Kadyrov is and what is known about his illness can be found in the material by RBC-Ukraine.