GENEVA -- U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher told Russia on Wednesday that Washington was willing to back Moscow's reform program with substantial economic aid but warned that the Chechnya conflict could prevent this.


Christopher's warning to Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev followed two days of talks in Geneva which brought a promise that Moscow would tackle the humanitarian fallout of the Chechnya war and allow international observers into the Caucasus region.


But Kozyrev stuck firmly to the Kremlin line that Chechnya was a purely domestic problem, pointedly remarking at a joint news conference that U.S. leaders had used military force inside American borders five times in 20 years.


The talks, which began with a dinner Tuesday night, covered issues including Iraq, Bosnia, the expansion of NATO and a new model for European security.


The two men said they had agreed that an uneasy "cold peace" -- a phrase used by President Boris Yeltsin last year -- should not be allowed to replace Cold War divisions, and boasted of a "maturing relationship."


According to Christopher, however, "the tragic situation in Chechnya formed the inevitable backdrop" to talks.


The brutality of Moscow's Chechnya campaign, which has forced some 400,000 people into exile, has provoked widespread condemnation in the West.


It has also proved acutely embarrassing to the U.S. administration, torn between public outrage at the events in Chechnya and the need to support Yeltsin as the man it sees as best placed to carry out Russia's market reforms.


Christopher said he had told Kozyrev the United States fully supported the principle of Russia's territorial integrity but was deeply concerned about the human cost of the Chechnya war and its effect on the reform program.


"Our interest is clear in this matter. We want to see a stable, democratic Russia being integrated into the international community," he added.


"What we don't want to see is a Russia mired in a military quagmire that erodes reform and tends to isolate Russia internationally."


To that end, Kozyrev had pledged that Russia would supply humanitarian relief to the victims of the conflict and to cooperate with a mission from the Organization for Security and Cooperation, set to leave for Chechnya this week.


Christopher said Kozyrev had told him Moscow planned to hold free, internationally monitored elections in Chechnya "to allow the people of Chechnya to determine their own future consistent with the Russian constitution."


"During the meeting last night and again today, the foreign minister stressed to me that Russian's commitment to democracy and free markets is unwavering," Christopher said.


"In that context, I underscored again President Clinton's determination to promote the process of Russian reform by allowing U.S. economic assistance."


In Brussels, the independent group Human Rights Watch accused Russian and Chechen forces Wednesday of seriously violating humanitarian law and called on the Russian authorities to pledge to punish offenders.