04 December 2002 15:50
Freed Chechen envoy urges EU to broker peace for Chechnya
Top Chechen envoy Akhmed Zakayev urged the European Union to help broker a peace settlement for Chechnya and accused
the Kremlin of trying to silence the voices speaking out against the war.
"The only way out of this conflict is a political solution where the European Union could play an important
role," a smiling Zakayev said Wednesday, looking well after his five-week stay in a Danish jail.
Zakayev, envoy for rebel Chechen president Aslan Maskhadov, was arrested on October 30 by Danish police acting on a
Russian arrest warrant, followed by an extradition request alleging various terrorist actions in the late 1990s.
He was freed on Tuesday after the justice ministry cited a lack of evidence in the case and shed doubt on witnesses
supporting the Russian request.
"I thank Denmark and the entire European Union that they did not succomb to the Kremlin's gross provocation
and allowed me to go free," said Zakayev in an interview to Chechen press.
"The Kremlin warmongers who have unleashed an inhuman war against the Chechen people today are doing everything
to neutralise those politicians who seek an end to the conflict," he said.
"The Russian authorities wanted to link my political activities in Europe with the actions of the group of
Chechens who seized the Nord Ost theatre in Moscow. But this didn't succeed at all," he said referring to the
hostage-taking in October that ended when Russian forces raided the theater.
At the news conference, Zakayev renewed the rebel leadership's offer to hold unconditional negotiations with the
Russian government and emphasized that a negotiated settlement was the only way to end the conflict.
"We have worked and will continue to work in this direction, and I'm sure that sooner or later the Russian
leaders will come to the same conclusion," added the grey-haired and bearded 43-year-old.
But Russia's top official on Chechnya branded Zakayev a criminal, effectively rejecting the offer of peace talks
to end the drawn-out war.
"For us, he's a criminal," a spokesman for Sergei Yastrzhembsky, President Vladimir Putin's top
envoy on Chechnya, said.
"Zakayev's opinion holds no importance," he told AFP, adding: "The only acceptable solution is
Zakayev's extradition and his appearance before a court."
Zakayev said he had spoken to Maskhadov on the telephone late Tuesday after his release, and that the two had agreed
that the Chechen envoy should continue his diplomatic work in Europe to work towards an end to the conflict.
Moscow has failed to recognize Maskhadov as the legitimate leader of Chechnya and in October 1999 poured soldiers
back into Chechnya to crush separatist forces and reestablish control.
Zakayev said he was not afraid of Russia again trying to have him arrested in Europe. "I don't think there
is a country that would arrest me on the basis of the accusations and evidence such as those presented to Denmark,"
he said.
Nevertheless, security at his press appearance was tight, with armed undercover police among the journalists.
"No Chechen is safe today... and I'm no exception," he said.
In Russia, a spokesman for Maskhadov hailed Denmark's decision to release Zakayev, telling AFP by telephone:
"Denmark showed the world the untenability of Russia's declarations and once again showed world opinion
that there is a large difference between terrorists and Chechen resistance fighters who are defending their
homeland."
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