French hostage describes Chechen ordeal

Brice Fleutiaux enjoys his first meal in freedom

A French photographer kidnapped in Chechnya last October has returned home to France.

The French Foreign Ministry said no ransom money was paid for the release of Brice Fleutiaux, despite a demand from his kidnappers for $1.5 million.

The Russian Interior Ministry said that the photographer was freed as a result "of a special police operation".

Mr Fleutiaux said that the conditions of his captivity had been "tough" and that for a while he had been kept in an underground cellar.

"Every contact with the bandits was tough, difficult," he said on French La Chaine Info TV the day after his release.

"They treat you like a nobody... I was in a cellar, underground, in a cellar made of concrete. There was no light. That was rather tough. Fortunately, I was lucky enough not to have stayed there for long."

A Chechen must have been released, perhaps somebody rather important, in exchange for myself

Brice Fleutiaux

Mr Fleutiaux, who was taken prisoner by Chechen rebels after entering the breakaway Russian republic from neighbouring Georgia, said he did not think a ransom had been paid to secure his release, but that he might have formed part of a prisoner swap.

"I am almost certain that no ransom was paid, but I think that there was some bargaining.

"Recently there have been quite a few exchanges of prisoners, and I think that, no doubt, a Chechen must have been released, perhaps somebody rather important, in exchange for myself," he said.

Putin rebuts French criticism

Russian Public TV showed President Vladimir Putin receiving Mr Fleutiaux in the Kremlin after the former hostage's arrival in Moscow on Monday evening.

For the Russian president, the freeing of Fleutiaux was a very good operation and he hopes to take full advantage of it

France Inter radio

President Putin said that Mr Fleutiaux's release was the result of close cooperation between the Russian and French special services.

"You know that our countries' special services have worked closely together, and this friendly work was good. I think that our Interior Minister will also confirm that French colleagues displayed patience in this cooperation," he said.

France Inter radio said that President Putin was keen to capitalise on Mr Fleutiaux's release by convincing the French government that its criticisms of Russia's handling of Chechnya were unjustified.

"For the Russian president, the freeing of Fleutiaux was a very good operation and he hopes to take full advantage of it," the radio said.

"France was the most critical of Russia over Chechnya. Vladimir Putin is therefore saying directly to the French: you see, you were wrong to criticize us since we've rescued one of your unwise citizens from the bandits' clutches," it added.

Kremlin cautions journalists

President Putin's aide, Sergey Yastrzhembsky, said he hoped that Mr Fleutiaux's experience "would be a good lesson to those who enter Chechnya without proper documents or agreement with the Russian side," according to Interfax news agency.

The day after Mr Fleutiaux's release, Russian Public TV showed a documentary film, "Slave Market", based on the testimony of former Chechen hostages.

According to the Russian news agency Itar-Tass, Mr Fleutiaux was given a preview showing of this film during his visit to the Kremlin.

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.