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Were there often intra-USSR wars? If not, why not?

There's an article listing many post-Soviet conflicts on Wikipedia, which indicates that there have been many wars between regions/countries that were once part of the USSR. The causes of the wars, such as ethnicity or religion, often seem timeless (i.e. they ought to have existed during Soviet times too). By implication, that would imply that the USSR itself was a very strained union since its constituents had deep grievances against each other.

Questions:

  • Were there regularly such intra-USSR wars before the union dissolved?
  • If no, how did the Soviet government stop the wars?

My research seems to show that there was violence, but for some reason it was less common than after the USSR dissolved. For example, there was fighting in Chechnya in 1940-1944, but nothing from 1944 to 1991.

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  • 1
    There were also military operations against civilians with dozens of deaths in Tbilisi in 1989 and in Vilnius in early 1991. There was of course the coup in 1991. Not sure if they count. Commented Dec 1, 2020 at 14:06
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    According to WP, armed conflict in South Ossetia brgan before the end of the Soviet Union: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991%E2%80%931992_South_Ossetia_War . Abkhazia had seen riots with more than a dozen deaths in 1989, but only escalated into a full-blown war in 1992. Commented Dec 1, 2020 at 17:04
  • 3
    Not the same as intended, which is armed conflicts between the various SSRs. Which were impossible as all armed forces were under direct control of Moscow (either the MoD or the KGB). Commented Dec 2, 2020 at 8:19
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    @jwenting: Chechnya and Transnistria were not between different former Soviet Republics. Abkhazia and South Ossetia in the 1990s were not really, either. Or at least not officially. Or the civil war in Tajikistan. Commented Dec 2, 2020 at 10:26
  • 2
    @Allure: At the end of the 80s, nationalist propaganda became easier due to liberalization. In the early 90s, the security situation became less stable due to the breakup of the Soviet Union and the resulting breakup of the Soviet Army and law enforcement. Commented Dec 2, 2020 at 10:32