President of Chechnya calls former militants back home from Europe

On February 5, in the course of his meeting in Grozny with Ramzan Ampukaev, representative of the Chechen Diaspora in Europe, Ramzan Kadyrov invited former militants, now living in Europe, to come back home. The Chechen President also rejected his any involvement in the recent murder in Vienna of refugee from Chechnya Israilov, who had earlier worked for his security service. The Kadyrov's meeting with Ampukaev was shown by local television.

"Now, the situation in the republic has stabilized, we witness a steady economic growth, and there's no sense for people to leave. And those who are already abroad, can always come back. We'll help them in every possible way," said Mr Kadyrov. "All sorts of Emirs and former participants of illegal armed formations, who are now Europe and whose actions were not aggravated by bloody crimes, have two alternativeseither to come back and serve for the welfare of their homeland, or stay there till the end of their days."

In the course of his meeting with Ampukaev, President has also stated that certain "anti-Russian forces" continue their subversive activities with the aim to discredit him, despite the measures applied by the Chechen leadership to stabilize the political situation in the republic. "The recent murder in Austria of Alikhan Israilov is one of such actions. We all see clumsy attempts to link this murder to my name," Mr Kadyrov has noted.

We remind you that on January 13, a refugee from Chechnya Umar Israilov (Kadyrov called him Alikhan for some reason), a former militant and a former employee of Ramzan Kadyrov's security service, was assassinated in Vienna; earlier he had filed a complaint to the Strasbourg Court on Human Rights, having accused the Chechen authorities of murdering and torturing local residents detained in Chechnya.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that last year Magomed Khambiev, former Minister of Defence of Ichkeria and Deputy of the Parliament of Chechnya convoked in 2005, on behalf of the authorities of Chechnya went abroad to hold talks with members of the separatist movement. It was reported that he would try to persuade them to return home. His brother, former Minister of Public Health of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (ChRI) and ex-representative of the ChRI President abroad Umar Khambiev has already returned to Chechnya.

It became known then that one of the leaders of Chechen separatists Ahmed Zakaev was thinking about his return home. President of Chechnya had stated earlier that Ahmed Zakaev's place as a theatrical actor is in Grozny, in the recently opened Chechen Drama Theatre, and not in London, "where they manipulate him and force him making non-objective statements about Chechnya to please certain forces." In February 2007, Kadyrov invited Ahmed Zakaev to return to Chechnya from London, having offered him work in the local theatre.

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