Russia criticizes US State Dept. report

Apr 06, 2003 Posted: 23:25 Moscow time (19:25 GMT)

MOSCOW - The Russian Foreign Ministry criticized a U.S. human rights report on Saturday, insisting there was nothing new in Washington's assessment which it called full of "familiar cliches and stock phrases."

"The Russian Foreign Ministry is acquainted with the State Department report and, unfortunately, nothing new or noteworthy has been found there," the ministry said in a statement.

The annual U.S. State Department human rights report, released Monday, contained "all the familiar cliches and stock phrases, double standards in which the human rights situations in other countries and the United States are assessed."

The U.S. agency criticized the Russian government for its "poor" record in Chechnya, saying that Russian soldiers have used "indiscriminate force" in civilian areas. The U.S. agency cited credible reports that federal armed forces had committed extrajudicial killings; it also noted killings by Chechen rebels.

Russia claims that international terrorists are deeply involved in supporting Chechen separatists who have been at war with Russia since 1999, the second conflict in the mostly Muslim region in a decade. The Kremlin has in part justified its harsh crackdown in Chechnya as connected to the international anti-terror campaign and has sought western vindication of this view.

The U.S. report also said that "members of the security forces, particularly within the internal affairs apparatus, continue to commit numerous and serious human rights abuses."

It also noted that the independence of Russia's television media, on which most of the population depend for their news, had been weakened, and that despite efforts, the country's judicial system still remained feeble.

/The Associated Press/