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Putin Sets 2 Preconditions for Chechen Negotiation
The Russian government will not hold negotiations with Chechen rebels until they promise to observe the constitution and to disarm all of their formations, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday in response to a recent right-wing proposal.
"We are ready for any contacts with anyone in conditions that the constitution of the Russian Federation is strictly observed and applied to all territories of the state, including Chechnya," Putin told south Russian regional heads in southern city of Kislovodsk.
The second mandatory condition is "the unconditional and immediate disarmament of all rebel formations and the surrender to the federal authorities of the especially notorious rebels," Interfax quoted the President as saying.
Boris Nemtsov, leader of the Union of Right Forces, on Wednesday suggested negotiations with Chechen separatists, saying "talks are always better than any use of force."
"If any Duma deputy, including Boris Nemtsov, is capable of guaranteeing the fulfillment of these conditions in the foreseeable future, within one month, let them do it," Putin said.
"There is no sense waiting for more than a month, or two or three, because the very efforts in this direction become senseless," he added.
Chechen Prime Minister Stanislav Ilyasov on Friday told the Ekho Moskvy radio that there is no point in holding peace talks in Chechnya. "Such talks will not lead to calm," he said.
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