RUSSIA-CHECHNYA: Yeltsin Calls on Army to Crush the Separatists

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Rajiv Tiwari

MOSCOW, Dec 27 1994 (IPS) - Russian President Boris Yeltsin Tuesday called on Russian armed forces in the breakaway republic of Chechnya to press ahead with their campaign against separatist militants.

In a hardline nationally televised address, Yeltsin spoke directly to Russian army and interior ministry troops sent into the rebellious republic led by Jokhar Dudayev.

“I ask you to spare no effort to accomplish the task which has been set, and I believe that you will accomplish it,” Yeltsin said.

“The Chechen republic is a part of the Russian Federation…not a single territory has the right to withdraw from Russia. Law and order will be restored to the Chechen republic. Grozny must be purged of criminal elements in the shortest possible time,” he added.

Though Yeltsin indicated that the road to a political settlement was still open he stressed that talks could be held only on a ceasefire and surrender of arms.

On Monday, Yeltsin had chaired a meeting of the National Security Council where he said: “We have come to a point where it is possible to bring an end to the participation of the military and move on to a second stage, the setting up of administrative bodies in Chechnya.”

But Tuesday’s speech is seen as evidence that Yeltsin has thrown his weight fully behind a military solution in the initial stages of tackling the Chechen crisis and is unlikely to call a halt to the armed assault which has resulted in several civilian casualties in and around the republican capital of Grozny.

It is also likely to dismay critics of the military intervention who were hoping that the Russian president would unveil a peace plan to promote a political settlement.

According to the official Russian Itar-Tass news agency, eight top level aides from the presidential advisory council — a consultative body — have asked to meet Yeltsin following his address.

Moscow has Tuesday reportedly dispatched crack commandos to Chechnya from their base in Tver, 150 kms north of the Russian capital.