FEDERAL TROOPS MAY LEAVE CHECHNYA EARLY.

The withdrawal of federal forces from Chechnya is proceeding as planned and may be completed ahead of schedule, according to military sources cited by Itar-Tass and Interfax. The first phase is to be concluded today, October 1, when the last of the military units not belonging to the North Caucasus Military District (NCMD) is scheduled to leave the republic. Then the withdrawal of NCMD units will begin. Military sources say that, if the withdrawal continues at its present pace, it will be completed by the end of October. The only exception concerns airborne troops which, though not subordinated to the NCMD, will remain in Chechnya to guard installations at Khankala, the main federal base outside Grozny. (Itar-Tass, September 29; Interfax, September 30)

Concern Over "Chechen Syndrome."