Talibs and Chechen terrorists involved in Uzbekistan uprising

Uzbekistan government is certain that the international community should not be involved in the investigation of the Andijan crisis

The Russian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Sergei Lavrov, stated that Russian special services obtained certain information saying that Chechen terrorists were involved in the recent uprising in the former Soviet republic of Uzbekistan.

”According to our information, several Islamic extremists, structures of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Talibs, and Chechen terrorists were involved in the revolt in Uzbekistan,” the minister told reporters.

It goes about the uprising in the Uzbek town of Andijan, which was brutally suppressed by governmental troops. A group of armed gunmen seized several governmental buildings in Andijan. According to independent estimates, over 700 people were killed in the riot.

”We are currently checking the information. We would like to establish a dialogue with those people who have any information on the matter,” Lavrov said. “We agree that an investigation is necessary,” the minister added. “We will be waiting for the information from the special committee for the investigation of the Andijan events. We also need to know how that situation was formed, how an armed group of men penetrated on the territory of Uzbekistan and how they captured people, weapons and buildings,” the minister said.

”One should not allow terrorist structures destabilize the region, strengthen their positions or even come to power there,” Lavrov told reporters. The minister also added that the US Department of State released a statement about the possible participation of international extremists in the recent revolt in Uzbekistan.

Meanwhile, the government of Uzbekistan believes that the question about the establishment of an international committee for the investigation of the Andijan crisis was ungrounded, Interfax reports. “We believe that there are absolutely no grounds for an international committee to be formed,” a statement from the Foreign Affairs Ministry said.

International structures, however, believe that the international community should be included in the investigation of the Uzbek crisis, Newsru wrote.

”It can be seen that the tragic events in Andijan have been meticulously planned in advance. The events marked the result of the terrorist aggression on the part of radical, extremist and religious forces, the goal of which was to destroy the constitutional regime in the republic and the secular way of the country's development,” the statement ran. The document also says that a special committee has started investigating the Andijan events. “The adequate information will be sent to a variety of international structures, including NATO. Spokesmen for the Uzbek government believe, therefore, that there is no need to set up an international committee for the Andijan crisis.