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Time to step up peace efforts following Maskhadov’s assassination says Andreas Gross

In view of the tense situation following the assassination of the Chechen rebel leader Aslan Maskhadov, who was regarded by some as a moderate, now is the time to step up peace efforts: says Andreas Gross (SOC, Switzerland), who heads the committee organising a Round Table on Chechnya on 21 March on behalf of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. This meeting should create the conditions for negotiating a political solution to the violent conflict in the Caucasus.

Strasbourg, 17 March 2005

Question: Who will take part in the Round Table in Strasbourg now that the Chechen rebel leader Aslan Maskhadov has been killed by Russian troops? Will prominent public figures also be present?

Gross: We are expecting the Chechen President-in-Office, Alu Alkhanov, the Russian Commissioner for Human Rights Vladimir Lukin, and Konstantin Kosachev, Chair of the Moscow delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Russian Duma, as well as parliamentary delegations from Council of Europe member states. The Chechen authorities co-operating with Moscow will also be represented. However, Russians and Chechens with links to the opposition in Chechnya but who have nothing to do with terrorism and do not contest the fact that the country belongs to Russia, will also take part in the Round Table. Supporters of the assassinated Chechen leader are also expected, and representatives of NGOs, universities and independent institutions will also take part in the discussions.

Question: Do you believe that these discussions can be successful given the tense situation following Maskhadov’s death? What expectations do you have for the meeting on Monday?

Gross: Discussions like the one that will be held in Strasbourg can create the conditions for negotiations in which political solutions and a peace plan for Chechnya will be sought. The Round Table is the very first step in such a process. People who under the impression that it is no longer possible to negotiate with the other side must learn to talk with one another again. If we succeed in having a fruitful dialogue on Monday, other meetings will follow.

Question: Are you not afraid that these events will give fresh encouragement to the hawks on both sides in Chechnya and lead to an intensification of hostilities?

Gross: Maskhadov was killed by forces which wanted to sabotage all alternatives to war. Such forces exist on both sides. Unfortunately, I cannot rule out the possibility that the timing of Maskhadov’s assassination may have had something to do with the Round Table at the Council of Europe – to intimidate participants and discourage them from coming to Strasbourg. It is a fact that his assassination benefits the hawks in both camps. That is why all those who are genuinely interested in peace must do their utmost to find a way out of the endless spiral of war, violence and terror.

Question: Could the Council of Europe not counter this situation by stepping up negotiations?

Gross: Apart from demonstrating our Organisation’s commitment through this Round Table, leading European governments should endeavour to speak with the competent authorities in Moscow and to make it clear that there is only one way to ensure that Chechnya remains in the Russian Federation and that is by making sure that Chechnya once again becomes a homeland for the Chechen people in the true sense of the word - for the time being it has become a hell in which no-one can feel at home.

Question: The young rebels who want an independent Chechnya and are prepared to use terrorism have not been invited to the Round Table. Do you believe it is possible to reach a solution without them?

Gross: It is impossible to negotiate with people who take children hostage and murder them. These terrorists must be brought before the courts and convicted. Russia cannot at present agree to be separated from Chechnya. Many examples in Europe have shown that internal self-government can work. This will not be possible in Chechnya immediately but perhaps in the long run. Aslan Maskhadov had also reached this conclusion shortly before his assassination.