Russian troops largely ignored a Sunday deadline in the Chechnya peace agreement, failing to dismantle all checkpoints in the breakaway republic as promised.
Only four out of 32 Russian checkpoints were in the process of being taken down, said Roman Sokolovsky, a Russian military spokesman. Under last month's agreement, all were to have been removed by the end of the day.Some Chechen separatist commanders, calling the peace agreement a re-election ploy by President Boris Yeltsin, have vowed to resume hostilities if the Russians don't stick to it.
Sokolovsky told the Interfax news agency that Chechen rebels were to blame for failing to adhere to the accord and for mounting frequent attacks.
Checkpoints near the villages of Assinovskaya and Sernovodsk, among others, were removed Sunday as a "goodwill" gesture, ITAR-Tass reported. But the official Russian news agency said the timing of other checkpoints' removal "will depend, above all, on the opposing side."
Soldiers manning checkpoints on the outskirts of Grozny, the Chechen capital, said they were not leaving.
"There are lots of terrorist acts being carried out in Chechnya at the moment," Sgt. Anton Tolkachov told Associated Press Television. "As long as the checkpoints remain in place, everything will be all right.
"If they are removed, no one knows what will happen. Things will only get worse," he said.
A Chechen who gave his name only as Magomed said it's important for the checkpoints to go.
"If they were removed and the troops were not here, we'd be able to bring order to our own country," he said.
The rebels also accused Russian forces of intensifying shelling and bombing in several districts over the past three days, claiming unspecified civilian casualties, according to Interfax.
Movladi Udugov, the separatists' chief spokesman, said the Chechen side had notified the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe about the incidents and warned that it "will have to take retaliatory measures."
Also on Sunday, Russian Television reported that Yeltsin replaced his hard-line commander in Chechnya, in what may be a move toward fulfilling his campaign promise to end the unpopular war.
The station, citing military sources, said Lt. Gen. Vyacheslav Tikhomirov was replaced Saturday by Lt. Gen. Konstantin Kulikovsky, deputy commander of the North Caucasus military district. Tikhomirov was appointed in January.
More than 30,000 people, mostly civilians, have died in the 11/2-year-old war over Chechnya's bid for independence.