Russian military aid in Afghanistan

Perhaps NATO is interested in Russia sending its instructors or even troops to assist coalition forces in Afghanistan, but Moscow will never consent to this, according to Russia’s Envoy to NATO Dmitry Rogozin.

Russian military aid in Afghanistan,

Media reports in Great Britain - a member of the Western Coalition in Afghanistan - are actively discussing all variants of Moscow’s involvement in the NATO campaign. This resulted from Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s decision to attend the Alliance’s upcoming summit in Lisbon, where he will, among other things, participate in a session of the Russia-NATO Council. The Western media are now wondering what offers for extending cooperation will be offered to Dmitry Medvedev.

At present, Russia is helping to train Afghan military units for countering drug trafficking and ensures the transit of non-military cargoes for the coalition via its territory. Another area is the so-called “helicopter package” - the issue that topped the agenda of the negotiations during NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen’s visit to the Russian capital. As a result, Moscow provided Poland with five Mi-17 aircraft to be used in Afghanistan. Furthermore, Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said at the meeting with his American counterpart Robert Gates that Russia is prepared to sell or lease helicopters required by the Afghan security forces. NATO is probably seeking additional supplies of these aircraft, as well as training courses for pilots.

The helicopter package does not provide for the deployment of Russian specialists in Afghanistan. But, according to The Guardian, both the U.S. and Great Britain are interested in getting more instructors to join the ranks of the Afghan police and army. This will help the republic’s authorities to regain control over territories which are currently occupied by coalition forces.

Thus, in line with western media reports, NATO is seeking more instructors from Moscow as well. But the idea of inviting Russian troops to Afghanistan seems more than incredible, especially given the stand by Russian Envoy to NATO Dmitry Rogozin, who said that Russia will never supply cannon fodder to Afghanistan. Editor-in-Chief of “Russia in Global Affairs” magazine Fyodor Lukyanov shares this view.

Sending Russian forces to Afghanistan is almost completely impossible, in light of our country’s experience of being involved in the republic’s military operations. Russia’s participation may be limited to military and technical cooperation only, like, for instance, the delivery of helicopters or maintenance support.

The issue of sending Russian soldiers to Afghanistan can hardly be of any interest to politicians, even though it aroused a certain stir in the media. “We’ve already been in Afghanistan and we didn’t like it much,” Dmitry Rogozin said. A similar issue is the suggestion that Russia will allow the transit of NATO arms, ammunition or manpower via its territory. NATO would certainly benefit from this, since the Taliban keep attacking the Pakistani supply route, but Moscow will definitely renounce it. 

(source:ruvr.ru)