WARSAW -- The prime ministers of Russia and Poland spoke for 30 minutes by telephone to try to resolve a dispute over the alleged beating of six Russians at a Warsaw railway station, the Polish government said.


The government's press department said in a brief statement Thursday night that prime ministers Waldemar Pawlak and Viktor Chernomyrdin also discussed broader economic and political issues.


The alleged beating of the Russian travelers by Polish police Oct. 23 prompted Chernomyrdin to postpone a visit to Warsaw scheduled for last Thursday and Friday, delaying the signing of economic agreements and souring already uneasy relations.


Poland has launched an investigation and says it cannot apologize until the case has been properly looked into.


The statement gave no other details and officials declined to comment Friday.


The Russian news agency RIA said Chernomyrdin had criticized Poland's failure to apologize over the incident and told Pawlak that Warsaw must solve the problem and punish those responsible before his visit can be rescheduled.


The details of the report could not immediately be confirmed in Warsaw. But the Polish news agency PAP also quoted Chernomyrdin as saying separately that Poland should punish the culprits before he goes ahead with the visit.


"We are waiting for the Polish side to carry out its investigation, punish the guilty and pay compensation for material losses," PAP quoted him as saying.


Polish officials have suggested the incident was only a pretext for Chernomyrdin to cancel the visit and dent Poland's image abroad as it tries to join NATO, but Moscow has denied the allegations.


Polish politicians were further alarmed by a decree issued Thursday by President Boris Yeltsin providing for evacuation of Russian citizens from foreign countries in "extreme situations."


The decree also allowed for "the use of forces and means needed to ensure the evacuation" and the temporary suspension of Russian offices in that country.