Russia will complete its anti-terror campaign in the Chechen republic in this year and the south part of Russia can at last be able to focus on its economic programs, said the Kremlin's envoy in the Southern Federal District Viktor Kazantsev on Tuesday.
The anti-terror operation in the Chechen republic will be brought to an end within 2002, and "the large bands, the chieftains of which realize the futility of resistance, will be liquidated and crashed within the coming months," Tass cited the envoy as saying.
On the same day, Commander of the Russian armed forces in the North Caucasus Colonel-General Vladimir Moltensky said that a tireless search for the chieftains of the illegally armed formations was in progress in Chechnya.
"We are looking for them the best we can. We make no breaks in our 'locate-and-destroy' operations," he told an interview with Russian media.
According to the commander the Chechen rebel warlords "never
stay longer than two hours even in highland villages. (Rebel heads)Basayev, Khattab and Maskhadov currently refrain from radio contacts. Holed up, the cowards."
"About a hundred militants, including a few dozen chieftains" were killed in a number of federal troops' successive and continuous special operations carried out in the Chechen settlements of Tsotsin-Yurt, Novaya Zhizn, Kurchaloi and Argun on the eve of the New Year and earlier this year.
In addition, the federal troops during this period "have seized over 2,000 pieces of various arms and large amounts of ammunition, liquidated 111 caches with arms and ammunition, food and explosives," said the general.
The main task of the federal troops operating in Chechnya is now to carry out "targeted work in the settlements," he stressed.
Concerning the situation on the Chechen section of the Russia-Georgia border, the general said, "It is currently covered with snow and the attempts to cross the border have proved futile." Some of the bandits froze to death in the mountains and the rest returned."
But he cannot rule out the possibility that more attempts will be made by the rebels to cross the state border. All the border posts are in constant preparedness and the border is closed for bandits, he added.
(Xinhua News Agency January 16, 2002)
