Motion for a resolution in accordance with article 50 of the Rules of Procedure
tabled by ...

on the situation in Chechnya

The European Parliament,

- in view of its previous resolutions on the situation in Chechnya;
- in view of the conclusions of the Istanbul summit of the OECD in 1999 and the commitments made by the Russian Federation on that occasion;

A. considering that the extent, the gravity and the ferocity of the violations of fundamental rights committed by the Russian armed forces in Chechnya have no equal in recent history, not even in the darkest hours of the Bosnian tragedy;

B. underlining the fact that since 1994, the beginning of the first war in Chechnya, between 100,000 and 200,000 Chechens have been killed (between 10% and 20% of the population, most of them civilians), 170,000 have taken refuge outside Chechnya and 260,000 in other parts of the country, all of them forced to survive in appalling conditions, while thousands are currently detained in the notorious "filtration camps";

C. extremely concerned at reports of the use by the Russian forces of weapons prohibited under the Geneva Conventions, in particular splinter bombs and chemical weapons;

D. condemning unconditionally the existence within the Russian armed forced of veritable "death squads" formed of the notorious Kontrakniki, often of former criminals released on condition that they agree to "fight" in Chechnya; recalling that these squads, as well as other units of the Russian army, carry out large scale "combing" exercises on a daily basis, including the summary execution of people in the areas involved, and acts of rape, theft, and torture of the civilian population;

E. welcoming the courage and the high moral sense of the Russian conscripts and conscientious objectors who prefer to desert or to refuse to take part in the shameful war in Chechnya;

F. considering unacceptable the fact that Commissioner Poul Nielson has not found the time to visit Chechnya since autumn 1999, despite the repeated urgent appeals by the European Parliament inviting him to visit the country to evaluate the need for humanitarian aid, and thus to signal the desire of Europe not to ignore the tragedy in progress;

G. underlining the fact that the tragic situation of the Chechen refugees puts the Union under an obligation to plan a humanitarian operation comparable in scope to the operation which it carried out successfully in Kosovo;
G2. inviting the authorities of the Member States to suspend all procedures that may involve the expulsion of Chechen nationals currently seeking asylum in Europe to Russia or to any other state that may deport them to Russia;

H. considering that the silence and lethargy of the Union in the face of this tragedy are already perceived as a renunciation of the defence and the affirmation of its values and principles with regard to the Russian Federation and are considered by the Russian authorities as the granting of carte blanche for all its demands;

I. underlining the fact that this renunciation by the Union has contributed significantly to the weakening of the democratic institutions, the judicial system and civil society (beginning with the media) to the benefit of a military-financial oligarchy which is now all-powerful;

J. underlining that fact that more than two years after the terrorist attacks in Moscow attributed by the Russian authorities to the Chechens and invoked to justify the intervention in Chechnya, no proof of the involvement of Chechen citizens has been found, while evidence is fast emerging that points to the involvement of the Russian secret services and of circles close to the government;

K. deeply disappointed that the announcement of negotiations between General Kazantsev, the representative of Mr. Putin, and Mr. Akhmed Zakaev, the deputy Prime Minister of the Chechen government and the representative of Mr. Maskhadov, was followed by only one meeting between them, in November of last year, and that no progress was recorded on that occasion;

L. recalling also the desire of Mr. Maskhadov, repeated on many occasions, to undertake negotiations;

M. considering that even admitting that Mr. Putin is in good faith when he claims that he is willing to enter into negotiations with his Chechen counterpart, the policy currently pursued by the Union would not help him in any way to uphold this policy in the face of a military lobby that is prospering as never before from the tragedy of the Chechen people;

N. recalling the legitimacy of the election of Mr. Maskhadov and of the government and the Parliament of the Republic of Chechnya, recognised in 1997 by the OECD and consequently by the Russian Federation; also recalling, therefore, the illegitimacy of any attempt to organise further elections in the current climate of terror created by the Russian troops in Chechnya;

O. considering that the European Union cannot ignore - especially since 11 September - the growing frustration of the Chechen people in the face of the indifference of the international community towards the tragedy they are experiencing, and the possibility that this frustration may lead to dramatic actions;

P. considering that the gravity of the situation in Chechnya is now such that it constitutes not only a tragedy for the Chechen people but also a serious threat for the survival of democracy in Russia, for the stability of the whole Caucasian region and for the security of the whole of mankind;
1. is convinced more than ever that only a political solution, through direct negotiation between the Russian authorities and the legitimate Chechen authorities under the aegis of a third party, can put an end to the war;

2. declares that without a bold, urgent and concrete gesture in this direction from Mr. Putin, the Union will be obliged to conclude that the Russian Federation has no real wish to negotiate and is thus deceiving the international community;

3. calls on the Council, the Commission and the Member States to make the commencement of negotiations between Mr. Putin and Mr. Maskhadov a priority objective of its policy towards the Russian Federation ;

4. calls on the President of the Commission to put an end to the shameful behaviour of Commissioner Poul Nielson towards Chechnya by assigning the portfolio for humanitarian aid to another member of the Commission;

5. calls on the Council and the Commission to establish, without further delay, an airlift operation between Chechnya and the Union in order, until such time as the two parties reach a peace agreement, to give asylum to 200,000 Chechen refugees, to be shared out fairly among the 15 Member States;

6. calls for the Russian and Chechen negotiators to be invited under the auspices of the interparliamentary Delegation with Russia and the Committee on Foreign Affairs;

7. invites its President to inform Mr. Maskhadov of its desire to welcome him in Parliament;

8. instructs its President to forward the present resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Member States, Mr. Putin, the Russian government and the Duma, Mr. Maskhadov, and the government and parliament of Chechnya;