Now isn't a good time to be a screaming Islamic raghead.

Bin-Ladin is Taleban's defence minister - Russian defence minister
BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Sep 26, 2001

Text of report in English by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS

Brussels, 26 September: Moscow has been giving and will continue giving assistance to forces of the Northern Alliance opposing the Taleban movement in Afghanistan, Russian Defence Minister Sergey Ivanov told Russian journalists in Brussels on Wednesday. "Russia has been constantly giving assistance to the Northern Alliance since 1996 and now this policy begins to bear fruit," he said.

"We have been backing the Northern Alliance for the reason that the Taleban were openly supported by Pakistan," the minister said. Until last week servicemen of the Pakistani army participated in combat on the Taleban side, he said. "The Northern Alliance still holds many Pakistani prisoners-of-war," he noted. According to Ivanov's information, the Pakistani leaders last week decided to alter their stand regarding the support for the Taleban.

The defence minister said Russia is going to step up aid to the Northern Alliance. "We maintain good contacts with them," he said.

Ivanov believes it is difficult to draw distinction between the Taleban and Usamah Bin-Laden. "This is virtually one and the same thing," he said. He said two months ago Bin-Laden had been appointed general inspector of the Taleban armed forces which is tantamount to the post of defence minister and this makes things clear.

Source: ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow, in English 0855 gmt 26 Sep 01

/BBC Monitoring/ © BBC.

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Chechen web site ridicules Spanish report that Bin-Ladin in Chechnya
BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Sep 26, 2001

25 September, Kavkaz-Tsentr correspondent Bilal Eski: There is no let-up in the propaganda efforts of Russia's special services to "drag" Chechnya into the global US action against so-called international terrorism. The most unbelievable information tricks are being used. Moscow is prepared to make really ridiculous statements about some CDs, schemes for air attacks on New York signed "jihad" and allegedly taken from "militants" and other propaganda rubbish which offices in the Lubyanka [the Russian Federal Security Service building] provide for Russian media outlets on a daily basis.

Judging by recent articles in some foreign publications, the Russian special services have decided to involve the foreign press and special services with a grudge against the Chechens, in their anti-Chechen propaganda actions.

"If Usamah Bin-Ladin is not on the territory of Afghanistan, then he has moved to Chechnya or northern China," Spain's El Mundo writes, citing the British intelligence services. [Passage omitted: details from El Mundo article]

El Mundo believes that if Bin-Ladin's ally, [Chechen commander] Khattab is hiding the former in the Argun gorge, "it is unlikely that he will be arrested". The newspaper also discussed another scenario - "bombing of the territory of Chechnya" by US aircraft. The newspaper believes that, most probably, this scenario will not take place. "Even if Russia allows this, it is unlikely that Washington will manage to achieve what Moscow has failed to do over several years - to combat the terrorists".

Reading this article in a Spanish newspaper, which was clearly written to order, the impression arises that El Mundo has no idea about the geography of Ichkeria [Chechnya] and is mixing up the Argun and Vedeno gorges. But it does not seem serious to think that the British special services do not know it is physically impossible to get to Chechnya from Afghanistan in just a few days, especially today. Perhaps this would be possible if Britons, Russians and Americans themselves organized Bin-Ladin's journey to Chechnya.

The Russian special services' statement that Khattab is trying to leave Chechnya is even harder to take seriously. True, the Federal Security Service does not indicate the direction in which Khattab is going to "escape". But following the logic of the Lubyanka propagandists, it could be assumed that that the Chechen commander "will try to escape to Afghanistan".

This is how all this is presented in Lubyanka. [Passage omitted on Interfax report on the issue]

We should note that the propaganda scenario about preparations for "Khattab's escape from Chechnya" is not new. But, to all appearances, there are no fresh ideas in the Lubyanka's reserves. However, the situation in the world forces the Kremlin to react. And Moscow once again has to use old and already discredited propaganda schemes in order to somehow load the "Chechen cargo" onto Washington's neck.

Source: Kavkaz-Tsentr news agency web site in Russian 25 Sep 01

/BBC Monitoring/ © BBC.

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What kind of aid do they need/want exactly?

"If one can take as a hypothesis that foreign aid with finances, people and arms for the terrorists in Chechnya ends, then it will all be over in 15-40 days. The operation will be close to completion", he said.

And, from what I understand, stop pro-Chechen propaganda.

And now you see the price for Putin's support. How and ever, I really don't mind. It is a rather open secret that the Chechen Jihadists had links to bin Laden and the Iranians, too, I suspect.

What I also believe is that the Chinese were probably helping the Chechens in a very covert manner, in order to cause Russia trouble in her interior.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

We'll turn our back for say, oh, a month. They can nuke or whatever the hell they want to do to the Chechen rebel movement, then they'll turn their back while we do what we want to the terrs in Afghanistan and the Middle East...

This quid pro quo is understandable. The Russkies have pledged to help us fight terrorism and are allowing the U.S. to fly in their airspace. So, we are helping them fight terrorists as well, and jointly we will run all of these bin Laden "freedom fighters" out of Russia.

Bravo for cooperation in the fight against terrorists!

I believe the Chinese will back away from their covert support of terrorism in Russia. And I hope they will cease and desist from selling weapons to terrorist groups .... otherwise, their assets in this nation and around the world will be seized. I think the Chinese may be more concerned about protecting their assets overseas and in promoting trade, than exporting terrorism around the world.

We shall see.