DUDAYEV DISMISSES TOP NEGOTIATOR.

In yet another indicationthat the recent military accord between the Chechens and the Russiansis not the end of the story and that the central political question–thestatus of Chechnya–remains open, Chechen president Dzhokhar Dudayevsacked Usman Imayev, his chief negotiator, apparently for makingtoo many concessions to Moscow, NTV reported August 1. (Imayev’sreplacement, Khodzhakhmed Yerikhanov, was also part of the Chechendelegation and signed the agreement.) Meanwhile, Chechen militarycommander Aslan Maskhadov told Russian media August 1 that Dudayevdoes support the military accord, except for "several minorpoints." But there were indications that some Chechen commandersdo not. A few were reportedly planning to try to overthrow Dudayev,and one, Abu Movsayev, said that Chechnya should be partitionedso that the Chechens could have an independent state in the highlands.