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Germany fears widening of Chechnya war

BERLIN: Germany's foreign intelligence service said on Monday that Moscow's war in Chechnya is far from over and it faces the risk of fighting spilling over into other regions of Russia or into Georgia.

"For Russia in general it is not yet possible to end this conflict," said Lydia Rauscher, spokeswoman for the BND foreign intelligence agency. "There is a very real danger that the conflict will spread."

She added that the region remained unstable and that the BND remained sceptical about Russian claims it was on the cusp of bringing stability to the region.

Despite a swift advance into Chechnya in the first phase of the campaign and taking the regional capital Grozny, Russia has been unable to drive the rebels from their southern mountain bases and stop costly ambushes on its columns.

Rauscher said the dangers included the possibility of the conflict spilling outside of Chechnya into other regions of Russia and into neighbouring Georgia, but declined to predict when this might happen.

"In this region you cannot predict things in time," she said. "But it is a danger."

On Sunday, the leader of a group of Chechen militia fighters who have battled on the side of Russia's forces gave of hint of the difficult situation by saying Moscow's offensive in the region was three to four months behind schedule.

Germany's BND chief August Hanning travelled to Chechnya last month to gain a first-hand view of the situation there. The trip caused controversy inside Germany, and the foreign ministry complained it was not informed beforehand.

"Germany has not yet realised the strategic importance of the Caucasus region for its own security," a high ranking BND official said. "One fears that the conflict could widen into other parts of the region."-Reuters