Chechen rebel sees cease-fire as way to peace talks
ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia -- A Chechen rebel leader told a Russian newspaper that a unilateral cease-fire he announced should help lead to peace talks with the Kremlin, and an official said yesterday that the truce had been holding for a week.
Last week, a rebel website carried statements by former Chechen president Aslan Maskhadov and warlord Shamil Basayev ordering a halt to all offensive actions in February in Chechnya and bordering areas as "a display of good will."
Maskhadov, who was president of Chechnya during its de facto independence in the late 1990s, said in an interview published yesterday that he hoped for an "adequate reaction" from the Russian authorities. He added that he had named a spokesman abroad, Umar Khambiyev, to head a delegation for peace talks with Moscow.
"If our Kremlin opponents display sober reason, the war will end at the negotiating table," Maskhadov told the business daily Kommersant. "If not, bloodshed will likely continue for a long time, but we will surrender moral responsibility for continuing this madness."
Liliya Tengiyeva, a spokeswoman for Chechnya's Interior Ministry, said rebels appeared to be observing the cease-fire.
"During the last week, there have been no serious attacks, raids, or terror attacks on the territory of the republic," Tengiyeva said in a telephone interview. "I wouldn't categorically say that these are the consequences of the moratorium, because such a lull is typical for the winter. Maybe it's just a coincidence but maybe not."
Federal officials have dismissed the calls as a bluff or publicity stunt, but daily reports issued by Russia's headquarters for the campaign against militants in Chechnya and nearby regions also appeared to indicate no rebel attacks had taken place in recent days.
In the newspaper interview, Maskhadov again sought to distance himself from Basayev, who has claimed responsibility for numerous attacks, including the September school hostage-taking in which more than 330 people were killed. He said he would try to prevent Basayev from carrying out new attacks against civilians, and he repeated his position that Basayev should face an international tribunal.
The rebel website had said Basayev ordered all rebels under his command to halt attacks until Feb. 22, the day before the anniversary of Stalin-era mass deportation of Chechens to Central Asia.
The Kremlin sent troops into Chechnya in 1994 in a bid to crush its separatist leadership, but they withdrew after a 20-month war that left the southern Russian region de facto independent. Russian forces returned in 1999.
