GROZNY (RIA Novosti) - One of the largest mosques in the world, named after Chechnya's first president, was inaugurated on Friday in the North Caucasus republic in a lavish ceremony attended by dignitaries from 28 countries.

Ahmad Kadyrov Mosque, also known as the Heart of Chechnya, is part of a major Islamic center that includes a clerical administration, an Islamic institute, a religious library, a hotel and a students' dormitory. The center covers an area of 14 hectares in the Chechen capital, Grozny.

The ambitious project was the brainchild of the late president, Ahmad Kadyrov, whose son Ramzan, the current president, took part in Friday's ceremonies. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited the mosque on Thursday.

The mosque is Europe's largest, with minarets reaching more than 60 m high and space for up to 10,000 people to worship.

"I hope that the complex will become a beacon of faith, safeguarding the national and religious traditions of the Chechen people, and that the mosque itself will become a symbol of the long-awaited peace and spiritual re-emergence of the republic," said Sultan Mirzayev, the grand mufti of Chechnya.

The walls of the mosque are decorated with the finest travertine marble and white marble, emblazoned by Turkish artists with paints that will last for 50 years. The verses of the Quran are beautifully rendered in gold.

The construction of the mosque started in late 1980s, although it was frozen during the conflicts of the 1990s, resuming briefly at the end of the decade when Ahmad Kadyrov was the republic's grand mufti. Building was restarted again in April 2006 and the mosque was completed earlier this month.

The inauguration ceremony coincided with an international conference, "Islam - a Religion of Peace," which opens on Saturday. Many of the international dignitaries will attend the three-day meeting, along with more than 170 religious figures from Russia's regions.