Warsaw, 3 August: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalist Andrey Babitskiy was on holiday when he interviewed terrorist Shamil Basayev, the Radio Liberty director for relations with the mass media, Donald Jensen, told RIA-Novosti on Wednesday (3 August).

"Andrey Babitskiy is the radio station's staff member. In the second half of June, Babitskiy was officially on holiday," Jensen said by telephone from Washington, where the head office of Radio Liberty is situated.

He said Babitskiy used his holiday as he thought fit. "He could have travelled to California to have a rest, stayed in Prague, but now we know that he travelled to Russia," Jensen said.

"When an employee is on holiday, he chooses and decides himself where he should be. This is his private life," Jensen added. He also noted that Babitskiy is a citizen of the Russian Federation.

Answering a question as to when Radio Liberty found out that their employee had interviewed Basayev, Jensen said: "We have received a call from ABC. Colleagues from that TV company told us that they have this video material."

"As to whether it was moral or not moral to show the interview with Shamil Basayev, I can reply in the following way: this is a question for ABC. Radio Liberty has not used this material," Jensen said. (Passage omitted: the Russian Foreign Ministry reaction to the interview).