Liberty's Blog

Russia warns West on Chechen issue

Russia warns West on Chechen issue They are pissed at the U.S. and the UK. for Aylum given some of the Chechnyens. If it turns out that we are protecting some of the real terrorist President Bush has som 'splainin to do. This is a tough situation. The Chechnians have some legitimate complaints. The terrorist have no excuse. Can we differentiate between the two? The Russians have a history of trumped up charges, and using that big hammer to come down on dissenters.

Russia warned the West on Thursday not to interfere in its policies toward Chechnya and said the granting of political asylum to rebel figures by Western governments only worsened problems for most Chechens.
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Western countries "bear direct responsibility for the tragedy of the Chechen people when they give political asylum to terrorists," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters here.
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"When Western countries urge Russia to rethink its tactics in Chechnya, I would advise them not to interfere with how Russia conducts its internal affairs," he said.
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His comments were directed particularly at the United States and Britain, which have both granted refuge status to high-profile figures in the Chechen separatist movement.
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Lavrov met with Rudolph Giuliani, the mayor of New York on Sept. 11, 2001, who expressed condolences after a wave of attacks, including a mass hostage siege at a school, that has left 500 people dead in Russia in recent weeks. "I do believe this will bring our people closer because we have been through something similar," Giuliani said.
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Lavrov said that the United States had so far succeeded in preventing further terror attacks on its territory since Sept. 11, but he said Russia would find it harder to do so in part because of its geographical situation.
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"There is access from many directions," he said.
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He said all countries needed to work together to counter the terror threat. "Events of recent years underscore the necessity of a strong partnership with the United States and all countries in the fight against terrorism," Lavrov said.
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President Vladimir Putin has promised to investigate the hostage raid properly. On Thursday, Alexander Dzasokhov, president of North Ossetia, where the hostage drama took place, fired his cabinet, Russian news agencies reported.
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Although the European Union and the United States have been quick to condemn the latest string of violence, they have infuriated Moscow by pressing it to deal with the root causes and address the grievances of the Chechen people.

Russia has created this problem, but maybe has a point here

Putin, speaking after the hostage drama, said the demands for the Kremlin to negotiate with separatist rebels were akin to inviting Osama bin Laden to the White House for dialogue. Russia has instead sought to end Chechen demands for independence by force of arms, fighting two wars there since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 saw long-suppressed ethnic and national tensions boil over into violence.
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posted by Liberty @ 5:46 PM