A concrete criminal group was identified, an organizer of the abductions was arrested and an approximate location of the hostages was determined, |
I announce that the leadership of the Chechen Republic and the armed forces under my control ... had nothing to do with this terrorist act. |
I appeal to those who, under force of the most difficult sufferings and losses, have decided to go down the path of martyrdom, |
I appeal to those who... have decided to go down the path of martyrdom, ... I understand you, but I cannot support you. |
I assure you, it would be much more pleasant for me to be an ordinary voter in peaceful Chechnya than the president of a republic at war. |
I understand you, but I cannot support you. |
Independence is not a whim or an ambition. It is the necessary condition of our survival as an ethnic group. |
It is not advantageous for Russia in its present state to fight against Chechnya. The army is a mess. It must be made combat ready. That will take time. Russia has a lot of economic, social and political problems much more important than Chechnya. |
It would be easier to fight the Russian army, and it would give me great satisfaction, but I have a responsibility to my people, |
Kamikazes must also be subordinated to a State discipline. |
The war is ending, for the first time in the history of relations between Moscow and Grozny, and the era of peace is starting. |
There can be no justification for terror against absolutely innocent citizens, |
They did not understand me properly, |
to protect the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity. |
Until fighting ends and there are conditions, which allow the free expression of will by the people, there can be no elections and elections are not held in these circumstances anywhere in the world. |