Mr. Speaker, everyone knows that I raised the issue of the people of Chechnya with President Yeltsin, and I told him personally that his government's attitude did nothing to further Russia's interests in the world.
We were there to celebrate the 50th anniversary of V-E Day. The Russians made an exceptional contribution since 27 million Russians died during the war. We accepted the invitation as a matter of course.
My colleagues in the Western world and myself refused to attend the military parade, but we agreed to attend a parade of veterans who fought during the last war. To show our disapproval of what is now happening in one part of Russia, we boycotted their biggest parade.