Controversy over cause of the Kursk sinking continues

BRUSSELS, Belgium - The controversy over what caused the sinking of the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk bubbled to the surface again, with Russia's top soldier saying NATO was still a suspect and the alliance's military chief again denying any NATO involvement.

Anatoly Kvashnin, chief of the Russian general staff, told reporters Thursday he had asked NATO military chiefs of staff to prove the alliance's claim that none of its submarines was responsible for the Kursk tragedy by allowing Russian experts to inspect NATO submarines.

On Friday, the chief of NATO's Military Committee, Adm. Guido Venturoni, issued another in a long line of NATO denials, saying the alliance was not involved in the Kursk tragedy. He added that what the Russian general told reporters and what he actually said in the meeting with chiefs of staff were different.

''I was not there when Gen. Kvashnin spoke (to reporters) but I know exactly what he said in the meeting,'' the Italian admiral said. Venturoni said Kvashnin told NATO's top soldiers that Moscow still ''had doubts,'' and that those doubts could have been eliminated if the alliance had given a clear response when Russia first asked about its submarines in the area.

Venturoni cited NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson's letter to the Russian ambassador in Brussels shortly after the accident affirming that no NATO assets were involved in the Kursk incident. Russian President Vladimir Putin also received assurances from President Clinton, Venturoni said.

He added: ''As a military man, as an admiral, as a naval officer ... if we speak of a submarine of 18,000 tons of weight, with a double hull ... that we say has suffered major damage or a kind of devastation by hitting some object ... I think that object would receive a similar extent of damage.''

Russian naval officials have insisted on lifting the submarine to determine what caused the Aug. 12 explosions aboard the Kursk. Russian and Norwegian divers have recovered 12 bodies so far and some of the ship's documents.

Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov, who is leading the government commission investigating the disaster, said a dent filmed on the Kursk's hull during the recovery operation may be evidence of a collision with a foreign vessel.

Venturoni, speaking to reporters after a two-day NATO chiefs of staff meeting in Brussels, said NATO itself has no submarines, only NATO members have submarines.

''NATO has already answered (the Russian queries) through the secretary-general,'' he said. ''It is not in my power nor in the power of the Military Committee to agree on an inspection on a submarine that belongs to a NATO nation, be it French or Dutch or whatever it is.''