The Argun River flows through the northern Caucasus

Caucasus

The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...

, Georgia

Georgia (country)

Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

, and the Chechen Republic

Chechnya

The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...

 of Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

. It is an affluent of the Sunzha

Sunzha River

The Sunzha is a river in North Ossetia, Ingushetia and Chechnya, Russia, a right tributary of Terek River. It is 278 km long. The Sunzha rises on the Northern slope of the Caucasus Major. Its major tributaries are the Assa River and Argun River. With a turbidity of 3,800 g/m³, it carries 12,2...

 and lies within the river basin of the Terek. The river has its sources on the northern slopes of the Caucasus in Georgia.
The Argun flows in western Chechnya through Itum-Kalinsky

Itum-Kalinsky District

Itum-Kalinsky District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the fifteen in the Chechen Republic, Russia. Its administrative center is the rural locality of Itum-Kale. District's population: 6,083 . Population of Itum-Kale accounts for 47.9% of the district's population....

 and Shatoysky District

Shatoysky District

Shatoysky District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the fifteen in the Chechen Republic, Russia. Its administrative center is the rural locality of Shatoy. District's population: 13,155 . Population of Shatoy accounts for 13.5% of the district's population....

s.

This area was the first place where Chechens

Chechen people

Chechens constitute the largest native ethnic group originating in the North Caucasus region. They refer to themselves as Noxçi . Also known as Sadiks , Gargareans, Malkhs...

 established themselves and many ruins of former villages built in the traditional style can still be seen. The Argun serves as a natural border between the Shalinsky

Shalinsky District, Chechen Republic

Shalinsky District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the fifteen in the Chechen Republic, Russia. Its administrative center is the town of Shali...

 and the Groznensky District

Groznensky District

Groznensky District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the fifteen in the Chechen Republic, Russia. Its administrative center is the city of Grozny . District's population: 126,940 ;...

s. Before the First

First Chechen War

The First Chechen War, also known as the War in Chechnya, was a conflict between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, fought from December 1994 to August 1996...

 and Second Chechen War

Second Chechen War

The Second Chechen War, in a later phase better known as the War in the North Caucasus, was launched by the Russian Federation starting 26 August 1999, in response to the Invasion of Dagestan by the Islamic International Peacekeeping Brigade ....

s the region around the river was populated by numerous farms and houses. The town of Argun is named after the river.

On September 7, 2008 the only bridge crossing the Argun River, connecting northern and southern territories of Chechnya, collapsed. Drivers caught on the bridge escaped without injury. A federal road administration representative linked the accident to abnormal stress from heavy military vehicles.