Chechnya viewpoints: Mikhail Margelov

The conflict that has raged in Chechnya for the past decade has triggered sharply contrasting views.

To mark the 10th anniversary of Russia's massive military assault on the breakaway republic, BBCrussian.com asked 10 prominent politicians, human rights activists, researchers and journalists to comment.

The panel were asked to answer two classic questions that have troubled Russian thinkers for centuries: "Who is to blame?" and "What can be done?"

Alu Alkhanov: Chechen president "If somebody shows you the road to heaven, it might be laid with skulls" Irina Hakamada: liberal politician "A profoundly erroneous path of peace settlement was chosen" Diederik Lohman: HRW researcher "Peace, not independence, is on Chechens' minds" Konstantin Kosachev: Russian MP "We all agree there should be a political solution" Sultan Yashurkayev: Chechen writer "This is not a war, but a monster-corporation"

Tom de Waal: Caucasus expert "Moscow needs to stop relying on one narrow group -Kadyrovtsy" Valentina Melnikova: Soldiers' mothers "The yearning for a miracle is omnipresent" Mikhail Margelov: Russian MP "Outside forces are a factor in the war for the Caucasus" Lyoma Turpalov: Chechen journalist "Dialogue should result in general parliamentary elections" Akhmed Zakayev: rebel envoy "The war will continue spreading all over the Caucasus"

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MIKHAIL MARGELOV, head of the Russian Federation Council Foreign Affairs Committee

WHO IS TO BLAME?

It would be superficial - to say the least - to blame Dzhokhar Dudayev or Boris Yeltsin for the entire conflict. The current instability in the North Caucasus had historical preconditions going back not really to the 19th Century, but to the 1920s.

Chechnya has a strategic geopolitical position. Pull a string there and the entire Caucasus region will fall apart Mikhail Margelov

At that time already the interference of "outside forces" was a factor in the "war for the Caucasus".

The collapse of the USSR revived old conflicts that had been kept at bay, partly by repression.

It seems futile to determine who is guilty for such historical and geopolitical circumstances. In Chechnya historical memory turned out to be very deep-rooted. Stalin's deportation [of Chechens] strengthened emotions, and 10 years ago people appeared who managed to revive them.

Chechnya has a strategic geopolitical position. Pull a string there and the entire Caucasus region will fall apart. Dudayev declared Chechnya independent, while the Pan-Turkic Confederation of Caucasus People supported the separation of the North Caucasus from Russia. And so it all started.

But one should distinguish between the two Chechen wars. Both sides - Moscow and Grozny - are perhaps to blame for unleashing the first one.

The genocide of non-Chechens started in the republic. Outside terrorist circles started getting involved, and Caspian oil was becoming part of the equation. Moscow reacted hastily. The actions were ill-conceived from both the political and the military points of view.

The [1996] Khasavyurt peace agreement turned Chechnya into a pirate state. Terrorists from all over the world started assembling there. [In 1999] they invaded Dagestan. The military operation during the second war was more or less successful.

WHAT CAN BE DONE?

Terrorists will not be involved in the settlement process.

QUICK GUIDE The Chechen conflict

Russia is part of the anti-terrorist coalition, which does not hold negotiations with terrorists.

A political process is under way in Chechnya.

The world community is taking part in it, represented by such organisations as the OSCE and PACE.

The Beslan child-killers are not rebels or separatists. However, the ideologists of such actions are strolling around European capitals and government buildings in countries which participate in the anti-terrorist coalition.

This does nothing to help resolve the conflict in Chechnya.