New talks in Chechnya as Lebed waits for Yeltsin .
Dmitry Kuznets
NOVYE ATAGI , Russia 1996-08-27
Russian and rebel military commanders finally met in Chechnya on Tuesday for delayed talks aimed at finalising a ceasefire arranged last week by President Boris Yeltsin 's envoy Alexander Lebed .
The Russian army commander in the region , General Vyacheslav Tikhomirov , arrived at the rebel-held village of Novye Atagi , some 20 km ( 12 miles ) south of the Chechen capital Grozny for discussions with rebel chief-of-staff Aslan Maskhadov .
But Lebed himself , the Kremlin security chief , is still waiting back in Moscow to meet Yeltsin over his plans for a lasting political settlement in Chechnya .
Itar-Tass news agency quoted the Kremlin press service as saying Yeltsin , who left for a state holiday home near Moscow on Monday , would hold no working meetings on Tuesday .
Lebed interrupted talks with Chechnya 's separatists on a political deal on Sunday , saying he had to consult with Yeltsin .
After a meeting failed to materialise on Monday , Lebed 's spokesman said he might meet the president on Tuesday .
But Yeltsin 's spokesman rebuffed the suggestion , saying the president had left Moscow for a holiday near the capital .
The Russians postponed the talks after a Chechen band disarmed a column of interior ministry troops on Sunday .
The Chechens said a renegade group seized the weapons and said on Monday they had all been returned .
The Russian command insisted that not all the weapons were the same as those taken .
Tass said the weapons and the practical implementation of the ceasefire signed by Lebed and Maskhadov last Thursday would be on the agenda of today 's talks .
Neither spoke to reporters before the meeting , which started around 10.45 a.m. ( 0645 GMT ) .
Also in Novye Atagi on Tuesday morning , was Tim Guldimann , the Swiss diplomat who heads the Chechnya mission of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe ( OSCE ) .
Guldimann , who helped broker an earlier truce in May , was not taking part in the Tikhomirov-Maskhadov talks .
Lebed 's peace mission this month has stopped some of the worst fighting of the 20-month-old conflict .
However , tension on the ground indicates that it could falter if the momentum for a settlement is not maintained .
Three Russian servicemen were wounded in a total of six shooting incidents overnight , Itar-Tass news agency quoted the Russian military as saying on Tuesday morning .
RIA news agency quoted an army source accusing rebel fighters of failing to turn up for joint Russian-Chechen police patrols in some districts of the capital Grozny on Tuesday .
But the separatist command told Interfax news agency the patrols , part of the truce brokered by Lebed last week , would begin on Tuesday after delays for " technical reasons " .
Yeltsin 's spokesman said he might meet officials during his break , but indicated Lebed was low on the list by saying Yeltsin would need time to study the proposals before talking to him .
Russian news agencies also quoted the Kremlin spokesman as saying that Lebed 's representatives had not sought a meeting , hinting at an attempt by the president to put his popular and outspoken protege in his place with a lesson on protocol .
Yeltsin , 65 , has kept a low profile since he was reelected in July , prompting new speculation that the two heart attacks he suffered last year and a rumoured drinking problem could be taking their toll , weakening his grip on affairs of state .
Aides have dismissed such speculation , insisting that he simply needs a rest after his energetic election campaign .
Some analysts say the Kremlin leader , whose order sending troops and tanks into Chechnya in 1994 started Russia 's ill-fated military campaign , could merely be reluctant to put his name to a peace process which might fall apart .
But Lebed , who has no real power without his boss and has hinted at dark forces in Moscow working against him , appears to think a deal will not stick without strong backing from Yeltsin .
His proposals have not been spelled out but are expected to involve a compromise between the separatists ' demand for independence and Moscow 's insistence that Chechnya remain part of the Russian Federation .