Moscow - The Russian Prime Minister, Mr Vladimir Putin, yesterday declared that Russia's flag was again flying over a key Chechen town as Moscow came under renewed Western pressure to halt its seven-week offensive against the rebel region.
The Defence Minister, Mr Igor Sergeyev, accused the United States of stirring up the Chechen conflict, while in Helsinki the Foreign Minister, Mr Igor Ivanov, rejected an offer from the OSCE to help end the fighting.
"It is in the national interests of the United States that a guided, armed conflict smoulder constantly on the territory of the North Caucasus," Mr Sergeyev said. Ireland has allocated £220,000 in humanitarian assistance to Chechnya, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ms Liz O'Donnell, announced yesterday. The amount is in addition to an EU aid package of €1.2 million.