Russian Security Adviser Defends Agreement That Halted Fighting Alexander Lebed Says That About 80,000 Died In 21 Months Of War

In the grimmest assessment to date of the toll in Chechnya, Alexander Lebed said Tuesday that about 80,000 people had been killed in the fighting and that some 240,000 had been wounded.

The estimates by President Boris Yeltsin’s security adviser far exceed many casualty projections, which hold that 30,000 to 40,000 people have been killed in 21 months of war. But some human rights organizations said Lebed’s figures are more up to date.

Madina Magomadova, the head of the Mothers of Chechnya Committee, said that some 75,000 people had been killed by January and that the toll has risen since.

Lebed’s assessment came during a news conference in which he defended the recent accord that ended the fighting and deferred the question of Chechnya’s independence.

Since Lebed signed an accord with Chechen military commanders, his task has been further complicated by Kremlin infighting. Lebed has been chided by Kremlin rivals, who have complained that the accord makes too many concessions to Chechen rebels. Yeltsin has yet to endorse the agreement.

So, Lebed has taken his case to the public to maintain a sense of momentum for the peace plan.

Lebed said he interpreted Yeltsin’s silence as a form of consent, but acknowledged that his task would be easier if he had the president’s formal backing. “I can accomplish everything, but I must say that I could do with the sincere support by the president,” Lebed said.

Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin, who has been visibly unhappy over Lebed’s efforts to expand his powers, has also expressed concerns about the plan.

But Tuesday Chernomyrdin gave grudging, if qualified, support for the agreement in a meeting with regional leaders from the north Caucasus.

“The agreements signed by Lebed cause some concern, but on the whole we consider them right,” Chernomyrdin said. “We should act within the framework of these agreements and keep to their thrust.”

Lebed, however, did not shrink from rebuking his critics within the government, like Anatoly Chubais, the chief of staff, who has complained that the accord left many problems unresolved and failed to defend adequately the principle of Russia’s territorial integrity.

The centerpiece of Lebed’s defense of the accord was his assessment of the toll of the war.

In an opening presentation, Lebed said 60 percent of the schools, kindergartens and nurseries in Grozny had been fully or partly destroyed.

“One can speak about 80,000 killed, give or take 10,000, and about three times as many wounded and maimed,” Lebed added.