Word: kulikov
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Lebed brushed off the charges and promised counterallegations that Kulikov had set up concentration camps in Chechnya where thousands had died. His bodyguards then detained four Interior Ministry security agents who, they say, were following the national security adviser...
Some Russian observers noted that the main piece of evidence Kulikov produced regarding a possible coup was a document dating back to late August, which he admitted having in his possession since about that time. No matter; the normally sluggish government suddenly moved fast. Within 24 hours of Kulikov's going public with his allegations, Lebed was out. The announcement was made on TV by Yeltsin himself. The sadly feeble-looking President at times stared blankly at the wrong TV camera and seemed to take forever to place his signature on the decree dismissing Lebed. He made no reference...
...adviser described the scenario they sought to pre-empt by firing Lebed: unrest breaks out, Yeltsin's failing health disables him, and Lebed declares the President unfit to rule, calling on the military and security structures to help him "induce order" in the country. Nobody, however, except Interior Minister Kulikov seems to take seriously the tale of an imminent Lebed-led mutiny. "It was as good an excuse as any," said a senior government official. And Lebed's plans do not include a treason trial: he told journalists he was going to take a weekend off, then build a political...
...dismissal also casts a disturbing shadow over the Chechnya peace plan. While the rest of the government was apparently sunk in paralysis, Lebed almost single-handedly brought the fighting to an end last August--at the cost, his enemies in the administration say, of sanctioning Chechnya's eventual secession. Kulikov, the man who led the charge to force Lebed out, has been a vocal opponent of the peace agreement, and is widely suspected of wanting to resume combat in Chechnya. The Interior Minister last week went so far as to hint broadly that Lebed had links with Chechen organized crime...
...Yeltsin, the officials added, was not one to tolerate a rival center of power in his administration. U.S. intelligence analysts, however, found no credible evidence that Lebed had been trying to incite a mutiny. And they, like the Russian media, noted that the increased security measures announced by Kulikov after his public allegations against Lebed never materialized...