27 May 2004 04:21
Chechnya no longer key international issue - Lavrov
After a meeting with Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner
Alvaro Gil-Robles on Thursday, Lavrov said that "this issue is
MOSCOW. May 27 (Interfax) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Chechnya is no longer a major issue on
the international political agenda.
disappearing from the political agenda just as it has disappeared from the agenda of the UN Human Rights Commission,
where attempts were undertaken for three years to politicize and distort the situation."
"As for our immediate agenda, we continued our discussion on this issue with Gil-Robles," he said.
"Moscow appreciates the businesslike approach Alvaro Gil-Robles has taken to this problem," the minister
said, adding that Russia also welcomes the position of a number of other international organizations, including UNESCO,
on what is happening in Chechnya.
The agenda of today's meeting also included ways to advance contacts between Russia and the Council of Europe to
restore peace in Chechnya.
It does not matter when Chechnya ceases to be a major political issue, Gil-Robles said. What counts most is to ensure
peace and accord in the republic, he said. [RU EUROPE EEU EMRG POL] tm tj < >
[Interfax] |
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