MOSCOW — Chechen leader Gen. Dzhokar Dudayev signed a decree Thursday imposing martial law in his breakaway republic, Interfax news agency said.
He apparently hopes to ward off foes both inside and outside his territory.
The decree orders the introduction of martial law throughout the republic, which declared independence from Moscow in 1991.
The Russian Itar-Tass news agency said Russia's southern regional army will hold maneuvers near Chechnya's borders next week.
When Russia announced major troop movements near Chechnya's borders in November, 1992, Dudayev threatened to declare war on Moscow unless it pulled back.
Dudayev's decree says martial law is being introduced because of the "continuous provocations" of the Russian government forces and activities of the Chechen opposition.
Russia denies playing a direct role in the conflict. But it backs some elements of the opposition and has an interest in the conflict's outcome because victory for the opposition might bring the rebel region--a vital pivot in the regional oil network--back under Moscow's control.
