By Aunohita Mojumdar in Kabul
Al-Jazeera
"For the first time since the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan in 1989, and the subsequent fall of the Najibullah government in 1996, Russia says it is ready to play a greater political and economic role in the country it formerly occupied.
It has co-operated with Nato and other western deployments, opening up transit routes for international forces and initiating bilateral co-operation with Kabul.
Andrey Avetisyan, the Russian ambassador to Afghanistan, says Moscow supports the continuing presence of international troops in Afghanistan. However he worries that the international community, especially the US, are committing the same mistakes made during the Soviet occupation.
Al Jazeera interviewed the Russian envoy at his country's new embassy in Kabul.....
How has Russia supported the so-called war on terror and what changes would you like to see in that effort?
We support the international forces in Afghanistan. We are not interested in their defeat because otherwise we will have to deal with this problem in the future and I think it is in our common interest to join forces.
We have opened transit routes through Russia for example; we train some Afghan police and we are thinking of increasing that number. We are ready to provide Afghanistan with all possible assistance here.....Our common responsibility and common goal is to prepare Afghanistan and Afghan security forces to stand and fight alone and to complete this task without an international presence.
The time has not yet come for this because the Afghan army and police are yet to be increased in numbers and should be trained.[COMMENT: This is identical to Obama's rhetoric!]...
Should there be a date for withdrawal as some people have suggested?
I am afraid dates and deadlines spoil the whole thing. When you have a date you relax and just wait for the date to arrive.
Are you comfortable with the anticipated increase in Nato and Isaf troops?
I think, and this is my personal opinion, that some increase is needed to improve the situation now, in the short term......
Is Russia uneasy about a US military presence in Central Asian countries which have traditionally fallen under Moscow's sphere of strategic influence?
We do not divide the world into spheres of influence. We are all engaged in this counter-terrorism effort together. So we don't see this presence as a threat to us because we are contributing to a common effort. I don't think it is a problem......"
COMMENT: So, there you have it! This is Russian "policy" which amounts to being an auxiliary of NATO. What a pity, for what used to be a super power.
Al-Jazeera
"For the first time since the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan in 1989, and the subsequent fall of the Najibullah government in 1996, Russia says it is ready to play a greater political and economic role in the country it formerly occupied.
It has co-operated with Nato and other western deployments, opening up transit routes for international forces and initiating bilateral co-operation with Kabul.
Andrey Avetisyan, the Russian ambassador to Afghanistan, says Moscow supports the continuing presence of international troops in Afghanistan. However he worries that the international community, especially the US, are committing the same mistakes made during the Soviet occupation.
Al Jazeera interviewed the Russian envoy at his country's new embassy in Kabul.....
How has Russia supported the so-called war on terror and what changes would you like to see in that effort?
We support the international forces in Afghanistan. We are not interested in their defeat because otherwise we will have to deal with this problem in the future and I think it is in our common interest to join forces.
We have opened transit routes through Russia for example; we train some Afghan police and we are thinking of increasing that number. We are ready to provide Afghanistan with all possible assistance here.....Our common responsibility and common goal is to prepare Afghanistan and Afghan security forces to stand and fight alone and to complete this task without an international presence.
The time has not yet come for this because the Afghan army and police are yet to be increased in numbers and should be trained.[COMMENT: This is identical to Obama's rhetoric!]...
Should there be a date for withdrawal as some people have suggested?
I am afraid dates and deadlines spoil the whole thing. When you have a date you relax and just wait for the date to arrive.
Are you comfortable with the anticipated increase in Nato and Isaf troops?
I think, and this is my personal opinion, that some increase is needed to improve the situation now, in the short term......
Is Russia uneasy about a US military presence in Central Asian countries which have traditionally fallen under Moscow's sphere of strategic influence?
We do not divide the world into spheres of influence. We are all engaged in this counter-terrorism effort together. So we don't see this presence as a threat to us because we are contributing to a common effort. I don't think it is a problem......"
COMMENT: So, there you have it! This is Russian "policy" which amounts to being an auxiliary of NATO. What a pity, for what used to be a super power.
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