by Viktoria Loginova
SOCHI, Russia, Aug 31 (AFP) - Russian President Vladimir Putin Tuesday linked last week's downing of two passenger airliners to the Al-Qaeda network and said it was evidence of the presence of international terrorism on Russian soil in Chechnya.
"The fact that an international terrorist organization linked to Al-Qaeda took responsibility for the blowing up of two planes shows once again the link between destructive elements in Chechnya and international terrorism," Putin told reporters.
A group calling itself the Islambouli Brigades claimed responsibility for the downing of the planes on an Internet website and warned they would carry out further operations in the future "to back and assist our brothers in Chechnya."
Putin did not make it clear if he was referring to that claim of responsibility and whether Russian investigators therefore regarded it as authentic.
The Russian president, flanked by French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, said Russia would continue to combat separatist forces in Chechnya, a province wracked by war for most of the past decade.
But he added that Moscow was prepared "to continue dialogue with any forces interested in a political solution in Chechnya," a comment that coincided with remarks published in a newspaper Tuesday from the republic's newly-elected leader.
Standing by Putin's side, Chirac issued a fresh and urgent appeal for the release of two French journalists held hostage in Iraq by a group that has demanded France rescind a controversial new law banning the wearing of Muslim headscarves and other signs of religious affiliation in state schools.
"I renew here my solemn appeal for the freedom" of the two journalists, Chirac said.
Russian officials have already categorized the downing of the two planes as "terrorist acts" and Putin's remarks linking them to Al-Qaeda came as investigators continued to search for clues.
Their efforts have focused on confirming the identities and motives of two Chechen women suspected of being suicide bombers who brought the planes down simultaneously late on August 25, killing all 90 people aboard both planes.
Both Chirac and Schroeder gave Putin a wide berth in dealing with Chechnya, voicing support for what they described as his efforts to obtain a political solution to the separatist crisis there.
"A political solution is necessary and this is what Russia wants," the French president said.
"But a political solution has a limit," he added. "It is a limit that everyone can understand and that no one can seriously contest ... the territorial unity of the Russian Federation".
Schroeder offered similar backing for Putin, saying that presidential elections held in Chechnya on Sunday "demonstrate that Russia wants a political solution" there.
"We will continue to look for a solution in critical solidarity," the German leader added.