NATO transit through Russia still possible – envoy
(Interfax – Brussels, May 20, 2015) After the International Security Assistance Force completes its operation in Afghanistan, for which a simplified procedure of transit of freight was used, the...
View ArticleNEWSLINK Christian Science Monitor: “Russia in Syria: Ghosts of Afghanistan...
Memories of the Soviet Army’s failure in Afghanistan still haunt the Russian public – making a major deployment to Syria almost unthinkable, Russian experts say.
View ArticleInterfax: Liquidation of Taliban leader to hinder negotiations in Afghanistan...
MOSCOW. May 23 (Interfax) – The liquidation of Taliban movement leader Akhtar Mansoor will lead to further military escalation in Afghanistan, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. “If this information is...
View ArticleNEWSWATCH: “Challenging the U.S., Moscow Pushes Into Afghanistan. Russian...
“#Russia is making fresh inroads into #Afghanistan that could complicate U.S. efforts to strengthen the fragile #Kabul government, stamp out the resilient #Taliban insurgency and end America’s longest...
View ArticleNEWSLINK: “Russia Gambles in Afghanistan – Again Moscow’s overtures with the...
“… In recent weeks, senior U.S. military officials have accused the Russian government of providing support to the Taliban, the militant group still waging a bloody insurgency against the government in...
View ArticleNEWSLINK: “Afghanistan: No Way Forward”– Valdai Club/ Anatol Lieven
‘As the Afghan state becomes increasingly fragile as a result of internal divisions and the resurgence of the Taliban, its future prospects remain bleak. US-Russian cooperation on the issue remains...
View ArticleInterfax: Lavrov warns U.S. against attempts to use extremists in Afghanistan...
MOSCOW. May 31 (Interfax) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned Washington that the use of extremists in Afghanistan as temporary allies may have dangerous consequences. “If this is another...
View ArticleWest, Russia ‘Share Interest’ In Afghan Stability, Top U.S. Commander Says
(Article ©2018 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – April 28, 2018 – also appeared at...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Taliban Say They Will Attend Afghan Peace Talks in Russia”–...
“… The Taliban’s acceptance of an invitation by Russia to … Sept. 4 talks planned in Moscow was a reversal for the group, and came after the government of Afghanistan and its main supporter, the United...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Moscow Postpones Afghan Peace Talks; Decision comes after...
“Russia’s foreign ministry said … it has postponed a multilateral meeting on peace in Afghanistan after the Afghan government declined an invitation to meet the Taliban in Moscow. … The Taliban refused...
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Moscow Courts the Taliban”– Carnegie Moscow/Arkady Dubnov
“… Despite all this, Russian diplomats considered the Taliban’s agreement to come to Moscow to be a success. Unofficial information from inside the Foreign Ministry indicates the great importance it...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Reaches Out to Afghan Leaders for Taliban Talks,...
“Russia has quietly invited a group of senior Afghan politicians to talks with the Taliban in Moscow, bypassing President Ashraf Ghani’s government in a move that has angered officials in Kabul who say...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Challenges U.S. in Hosting Taliban at Afghan Talks”–...
“Russia is challenging the U.S. by hosting the Taliban at a Moscow peace conference in the latest source of friction …. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who pressed Russia to cancel a similar meeting in...
View ArticleDo Trump’s Afghanistan Claims Mirror Moscow’s Rhetoric?
(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – RM Staff – January 11, 2019 – russiamatters.org/blog/do-trumps-afghanistan-claims-mirror-moscows-rhetoric) Earlier this month, President Donald Trump offered his...
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Lessons for Leaders: What Afghanistan Taught Russian and Soviet...
“… the Soviet leadership made a number of mistakes, first when contemplating whether to intervene in Afghanistan, then during the intervention and, finally, when withdrawing the troops. Some of these...
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Russian general warns of Central Asia ‘crisis’ by 2020”– Interfax
(Interfax – May 15, 2019) A senior Russian general has issued a warning about the worsening security situation in Central Asia, including in Afghanistan, suggesting the region could experience a crisis...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Return to Kabul? Russian Policy in Afghanistan”– David G....
“… Moscow has publicly supported the current U.S.-Taliban peace talks … [yet] has a very different perspective from the U.S. … influenced by geography and history. Russia’s current strategic posture is...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Intelligence officials cast doubt on Times’ Russia-Taliban...
“Intelligence officials say a news report about Russia paying the Taliban to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan does not match ‘verifiable’ Taliban activity and was never presented to … Trump because it...
View ArticleWhat Does Russia Want In Afghanistan?
... Trump tweeted that the intelligence reports were not deemed credible and the Kremlin and the Taliban have rejected reports alleging that officers of the GRU - Russia's foreign military intelligence...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “How Kremlin’s View of U.S.’s War in Afghanistan Has Shifted”–...
“Deteriorating U.S.-Russian ties adversely affect a once-shared goal, leading to a U.S. intelligence assessment of bounties paid to Taliban.” “For years … the U.S. and Russia shared a goal of deposing...
View ArticleAUDIO JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Denies Allegations It Paid Militants To Kill...
“… The Russian Foreign Ministry said the initial … New York Times [story] demonstrated the ‘low intellectual abilities of U.S. intelligence propagandists.’ … Putin[] spokesman[] Dmitry Peskov[] called...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Colin Powell suggests media had ‘hysterical’ reaction to...
“… Colin Powell indicated … that media figures overreacted to a recent report that Russian officials placed bounties on … U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. ‘What I know is that our military commanders on...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “The U.S. must respond forcefully to Russia and the Taliban....
“… Russia’s alliance with the Taliban, while calibrated in the past, is designed to undermine the success of the U.S.-led peace process and to erode the will of the United States, NATO and the Afghan...
View ArticleRussian Moves in Afghanistan Are About Regional Stability, Not Revenge on U.S.
Hardly a week seems to pass without some new crisis in Russian-American relations [...]
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin is reckless because we allow him to be”– Washington...
“… Putin keeps defying the norms of international behavior. … Intelligence agencies have … evidence … Russian military intelligence officers, from … shadowy Unit 29155 of the GRU, paid … Taliban …...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S. commander says evidence hasn’t corroborated intelligence...
“The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan says … he has not seen evidence to corroborate claims that Russian officials placed bounties on U.S. troops … in the Middle East. … Gen. Frank McKenzie said …...
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Russia Says U.S. Troop Pullout from Afghanistan Risks...
Russia said Wednesday that Washington's plan to pull out troops from Afghanistan by September could lead to an escalation of the long-running conflict and derail peace talks [...]
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Tajikistan Seeks Russia-Led Alliance’s Aid as Violence Builds on...
Tajikistan is part of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a loose military alliance of ex-Soviet states that also includes Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Belarus [...]
View ArticleIn Welcoming The Taliban, Kremlin Opens Door To A Host Of Criticisms,...
The inherent contradiction in the July 8-9 visit by Taliban representatives to Moscow has led to outcry on the home front [...]
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov: No one thinking of...
(Interfax – July 21, 2021) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has given an interview to Interfax, in which he commented on leaks in Western media regarding a German-U.S. agreement on the Nord...
View ArticleBe Careful What You Wish For: Russia, China and Afghanistan after the Withdrawal
... The departure is accelerating the long-running effort on the part of Afghanistan’s neighbors, including Russia, China and other regional stakeholders, to shape Afghanistan’s future and secure their...
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Russia Says Taliban Controls Afghan Borders With Uzbekistan,...
The Taliban controls Afghanistan’s borders with ex-Soviet Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said [...]
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov: We can’t talk...
(Interfax – Aug. 12, 2021) Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov, who is responsible for international anti-terrorist cooperation, has given an interview to Interfax in which he speaks about...
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “As Chaos Engulfs Kabul, Russia Says It’s Ready to Work With the...
Moscow has a history of pragmatism toward the Islamist militia and appears well placed for a transition in Afghanistan. (Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Felix Light, Pjotr Sauer – Aug. 16, 2021) In...
View ArticleBeneath The Gloating, Taliban Takeover Brings Unwelcome New Uncertainty For...
... [T]he sudden, messy vacuum the United States is leaving behind means a new set of uncertainties and potential problems for the Kremlin [...]
View ArticleFSU Analysts Assess the Impact of Events in Afghanistan on Russia and...
The perspectives of Russia’s non-government Middle East experts on ... the Taliban and its impact on Russia appear to be more varied than those of Russian diplomats and ... other official counterparts....
View ArticleChaos, Not Taliban, Main Danger in Afghanistan, Moscow Military Expert Says
(Paul Goble – Window On Eurasia – Staunton, Aug. 25, 2021) It is a mistake to see the Taliban and even a Taliban government as the main dangers emanating from Afghanistan, Ivan Konovalov says. The main...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Urges Major Foreign Aid for Taliban-Ruled...
“Russia called for major international aid to help the Taliban … [while] host[ing] the radical Islamic movement for the first time since the chaotic U.S. withdrawal[,] …. [at a] meeting in Moscow...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “Taliban Face Pressure Over New Afghan Government at Russia...
"Changes are coming in the government," Afghanistan’s interim foreign minister said after talks with Russia, China and other nations [...]
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Russia Urges West to Engage With Taliban”– Moscow Times
Moscow last week hosted members of the Islamist regime for international talks, and the Taliban agreed to work with Russia, China and Iran [...]
View ArticleThe Collapse of the Afghan Government Provides a Challenge for China and...
(PONARS Eurasia Policy Memo – Elizabeth Wishnick – Nov. 1, 2021) Elizabeth Wishnick is Professor of Political Science at Montclair State University. The collapse of the Afghan government and takeover...
View ArticleRussia’s Approach to Afghanistan Following the Taliban Takeover
Russia, like most other states, has been in no haste to formally recognize the Taliban or even remove it from its list of terrorist organizations [...]
View ArticleRUSSIALINK: “Foreign Policy Experts Map Russia’s Plans for 2022”– Moscow Times
The Moscow Times asked 10 commentators for their predictions for the coming year [...]
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “‘Well over’’100,000 Russian troops killed or wounded in...
“More than 100,000 Russian troops — and about as many Ukrainian troops — are estimated to have died or been injured in the war so far, according to [Joint Chiefs Chairman] Gen. Mark A. Milley. … Some...
View ArticleJRL NEWSWATCH: “America’s Withdrawal From Afghanistan Did Not Spur Russia’s...
“The Persistent Myth That Could Weaken U.S. Deterrence” “… After nearly 20 years of fighting in the country, Washington [in August 2021] bumbled its way through a [chaotic and] disorderly exit [from...
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