Rebels take initiative from Russians in fight for Chechnya

MOSCOW - Rebels killed the Russian government's second-highest official in Chechnya, a spokesman said Wednesday - the latest in a series of attacks that has the military on the defensive despite its claims that the rebels have been defeated.

Sergei Zveryev was riding in a car in the capital, Grozny, when a remote-control bomb ripped through his vehicle Tuesday evening, said Musa Dzhamalkhanov, a spokesman for Russia's temporary administration in Chechnya.

Grozny Mayor Supyan Makhchayev, who was with Zveryev, was injured in the bombing. Makhchayev's assistant was killed.

The Chechen rebels' ability to pull off such an attack in the Russian-controlled capital was yet another sign of their stepped-up resistance. Eight months after Moscow sent its forces into the North Caucasus republic to quell rebel activity, it is the rebels who appear to have the initiative, able to launch attacks almost anywhere, analysts said Wednesday.

The events of the last days have made that reality even more stark. Over the weekend, three Russian police officers were killed in an ambush in Grozny. That was followed by an attack on Russian troops that left five dead in southern Chechnya on Monday.

''These new events are an answer to Russian claims that the conflict is coming to an end,'' said Alexei Malashenko, an expert on the Caucasus at the Carnegie Endowment for Peace in Moscow. ''I have a feeling the Russians weren't expecting this.''

The Chechen attacks mark a low point for Moscow in the war that started late last summer.

Chechnya had been virtually independent since Russian forces withdrew in 1996 after being fought to a standstill by separatists. But Russia sent ground forces back into Chechnya in September after rebels invaded neighboring Dagestan and allegedly bombed several apartment buildings in Russia, killing 300 people.

The Russian troops won a string of victories culminating in the capture of Grozny in February. But they have stalled since then, unable to defeat an estimated 3,500 remaining rebels in Chechnya's southern mountains.

Scores of Russian soldiers and police officers have been killed in ambushes in recent months. Each time, the Chechens have surrounded Russian units, often inflicted serious losses and then escaped. And in recent weeks, the rebels appear to have stepped up their campaign by trying to assassinate Chechens who work for the Russian-backed administration.

Analysts said the string of high-profile attacks could mark the start of more active rebel campaigning against the Russians now that summer has arrived, warming the region and masking many areas in thick foliage.

On Monday, Russian commanders announced the start of another offensive on rebel strongholds in the mountains. But there was no sign that the Russian forces were making headway or curbing the rebels' ability to strike back across the province.

''One has the idea that the federals, as before, don't have a well-thought-out tactical plan that takes into account rebels turning to methods of a partisan war,'' said the Segodnya newspaper, which has been critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Russians also appear to be having problems building local support in Chechnya. On Monday, the Kremlin's representative in Chechnya, Nikolai Koshman, dismissed former Grozny Mayor Bislan Gantamirov, who had been put in charge of a pro-Moscow Chechen militia.

Gantamirov was dismissed for neglecting his duties, Koshman said. Gantamirov had been reported to be under consideration to eventually lead Chechnya, under strict control from the Kremlin.

Despite their tactical successes, the rebels probably are not strong enough to oust Russian forces from Chechnya, as they did four years ago. And with the Russians ruling out a political settlement, the conflict appears to have settled into stalemate.

''I don't see any political will among the Russians to end this war,'' said Viktor Kremenyuk, deputy director of the Center for USA and Canada Studies. ''As long as the rebels keep getting supplies, this will go on forever.''