Ramzan Kadyrov made the comment during a press conference with Western journalists.
"What do we need independence for?" he said. "To return to the years of chaos and ruin? People have at last begun to believe that the war has finished for good. They have begun to live real lives. Chechens do not need independence."
Chechnya, a mountainous republic in the North Caucasus, saw two devastating separatist wars in the 1990s-early 2000s. Thousands of people were killed and the capital, Grozny, was almost completely destroyed.
Under Kadyrov, 32, Chechnya is returning to something resembling normality, although militant attacks still frequently hit the region.
"I am sure that in the near future Chechnya will be the most prosperous region in Russia," Kadyrov said, adding that investment in the republic was "another indication of the stability of our region."
However, Kadyrov and his personal security service have been accused of abductions by human rights groups. His critics have also frequently accused him of perpetuating a "cult of personality" in Chechnya.
The ruling pro-Kremlin United Russia party took more than 99% of the vote in last December's parliamentary polls in Chechnya. Turnout was also over 99%, the highest in Russia. Kadyrov has also said that he sees no need for opposition parties in the republic.
"We have to prove on December 2 that we fully support Putin and his party by voting 100 percent for him," he said before the polls.
