STRASBOURG TO HOST ROUNDTABLE ON CHECHEN PROBLEMS

PARIS, February 23 (RIA Novosti's Andrei Nizamutdinov) - A roundtable on Chechen problems organized by the political commission of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe will take place in the Council of Europe's headquarters in Strasbourg on March 21, spokesmen for the Palace of Europe in Strasbourg told RIA Novosti.

Representatives of different political parties, public organizations and movements of Chechnya have been invited to attend the roundtable discussion.

In compliance with the PACE resolution adopted in October 2004, those attending the roundtable should admit Russia's territorial integrity and condemn terrorism as a means to achieve their goals.

Chechen President Alu Alkhanov, Russian ombudsman Vladimir Lukin and Russian President's authorized representative in the Southern Federal District Dmitry Kozak are expected to attend the forum.

According to Swiss parliamentarian, cochairman of the temporary working group for the roundtable Andreas Gross, former PACE rapporteur for Chechnya, the purpose of the event is to expand the basis of the dialogue aimed at the political settlement in the Chechen Republic.

Earlier it was planned to hold the roundtable in Moscow.