Chechen separatist leader Akhmed Zakayev, wanted by Russia on terrorism charges, will appear at Warsaw prosecutor's office on Friday morning, his assistant said.
"Zakayev, accompanied by his lawyer, will present himself at the prosecutor's office at 8:00 (10:00 Moscow time)," Zakayev's assistant Adam Borowski, who styles himself "the honorary council of the republic of Ichkeria" in Poland, said.
"Zakayev did not arrive to Poland for hiding, Poland is not Akhmed Zakayev's enemy," Borowski added.
He confirmed that he was detained by the Polish police for an identification check, along with Zakayev's son Timur.
"Zakayev's son is currently here, in Pultusk, in Dom Polonii [where the congress is being held]. I hope that towmorrow he will meet with his father, when Akhmed Zakayev will leave the prosecutor's office after giving his testimony," Borowski added.
Another assistant, Aslambek Kekharsayev, said late on Thursday that "Zakayev is already in Poland, in Warsaw." The prime minister of the self-declared republic of Ichkeria in exile is to visit the three-day Chechen congress in the town of Pultusk, some 80 km from the Polish capital.
Polish police said on Wednesday they would detain Zakayev if he appears on the country's territory, on the grounds that an Interpol arrest warrant had been issued for him. Polish media later quoted governmental sources as saying that the Chechen separatist leader is unlikely to be extradited to Russia, or even placed under arrest.
In 2003, British authorities granted political asylum to Zakayev and he currently lives in London.
Russia, which issued an arrest warrant for Zakayev in 2001, has accused him of terrorist activities and repeatedly asked Britain to extradite him, but the request has invariably been refused.
PULTUSK, September 17 (RIA Novosti)
