RUSSIA CHECHNYA REBEL LEADER IS DOUBTFUL ABOUT PEACE PROSPECTS

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(16 Aug 1996) Russian/Nat • • Chechen rebel leader Shamil Basayev has told APTV he's sceptical about the efforts of the Russian military and politicians to bring a halt to the war in Chechnya. • • He said he did not believe the Russians would back down over the issue of Chechen independence as they would lose face in the eyes of the world. • • The destruction in the Chechen capital, Grozny, is evident everywhere. • • Few buildings remain standing - their inhabitants are either holed up in basements or have fled the war-torn city. • • Chechen rebels overran Grozny on 6 August, setting off one of the fiercest battles since the war began 20 months ago. • • They now have free run of the city, where demoralised Russian soldiers hunker down in heavily fortified posts and burned-out Russian tanks and APCs litter the streets. • • Russia is trying to bring an end to the fighting. • • Security Chief Alexander Lebed travelled to the breakaway republic to talk both Russian and rebel commanders. • • APTV met up with rebel leader, Shamil Basayev, Thursday to discuss the prospects of peace. • • Basayev, who masterminded the raid on Budyonnovsk last year when he seized more than one-thousand hostages, has been injured in the foot in the latest fighting. • • He said that 10 days ago he led 15-hundred men in the three-pronged attack on Grozny and now believes the Russians would need at least six months to take back the city. • • He told APTV he was sceptical about the efforts of the Russian military and politicians to bring a halt to the war. • • SOUNDBITE: (Russian) • I think that in two or three days time the Russians will have built up their strength to try to storm us again. • (Question: So you don't believe in possibility of peace?). • It depends on what kind of peace - we don't need the kind of peace that Pulikovsky (Russian commander) is offering us. They don't want to decide things in a civilised way according to international law. They're all crazed on Russian chauvinism and apart from that, none of the top Russian generals or politicians want to admit to the world their stupidity and lack of ability. All this suffering is their fault. • SUPER CAPTION: Shamil Basayev, Chechen rebel leader • • There was relative calm in the centre of Grozny Friday morning - although there was sporadic shooting it was not as frequent as it had been in the last week. • • Even so, the bloodshed continued - two Russian soldiers were reported killed overnight. • • Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork • Twitter: / ap_archive • Facebook: / aparchives • Instagram: / apnews • • • You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...

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