Published time: 29 Dec, 2015 21:13
The US and NATO mission in Afghanistan has been a
complete failure, the Russian President’s special envoy for Afghanistan, Zamir
Kabulov, told TASS, in evaluating the effectiveness of the International
Security Assistance Force (ISAF) there.
“Assessing the results of the actions of the
International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, it can be said that
they have completely failed their mission,” Kabulov said in an interview to TASS, adding
that the ultimate goal of the ISAF anti-terrorist campaign, which consisted in
creating “a democratic centralized state” in Afghanistan, has
not been achieved.
The special envoy stressed that, not only has the
US-led coalition in Afghanistan failed to achieve its main goal, but “has
not accomplished any of the tasks it had set before the operation,” as
Afghanistan still lacks “strong and stable central authority.”
40% of Americans believe US, West losing to 'the terrorists' on.rt.com/70j2
He also emphasized that, failing to defeat the Taliban
by military means, the ISAF’s current policy of national reconciliation
de-facto envisions their participation in the new political power structure of
Afghanistan.
Kabulov drew attention to the fact that the ongoing “Decisive
Support” training mission, which the US and their allies in
Afghanistan are currently conducting, has also shown very little result. The
program aims to improve the combat readiness of the Afghan army and police,
enabling them to independently secure stability and order.
According to Kabulov, Afghan governmental forces “show
inability to affect the situation due to a lack of arms and equipment, as well
as an insufficient level of training and low morale.”
Afghanistan ‘disaster from start to finish,’ says war veteran as Taliban advance in Helmand on.rt.com/702q
With the Taliban bearing down on different parts of
the country, Western troops have been forced to directly engage in combat,
leaving them less time to focus on training Afghan soldiers, Kabulov said.
Meanwhile, according to the Russian President’s
special envoy, the situation in Afghanistan remains tense, with “high
or extraordinary” security threats present in 27 of the 34 Afghan
provinces, as Taliban militants intensify their activities in different parts
of the country.
On December 11, the insurgents assaulted the Spanish
embassy guesthouse in the Afghan capital. The militants also killed six US
soldiers in a suicide bomb attack on the Bagram air base.
The Taliban has seized part of Afghan’s southeastern
Helmand province and heavy clashes with government forces have already been
taking place there for several weeks. British troops were redeployed to the
province after the militants took control of the town of Sangin a year after
NATO forces formally ended their combat operations in Afghanistan.
In October, militants seized two districts in
Badakhshan Province and even held the large northern Afghan city of Kunduz for
several days in late September before government forces managed to retake it
with heavy air support from the US.
In the country’s north, the Taliban has created several bases and about 15,000 militants operating in the area pose a threat to several Afghan provinces, Kabulov warned.
In the meantime, despite being in open conflict with
the Taliban, Islamic State is also trying to take hold in the country, posing
additional threats to the region’s security.
Russia can be ‘flexible’ in case of sanctions against
Taliban
At the same time, Kabulov stressed that Russia is
ready to help Afghanistan cope with its security problems and“consistently
lends comprehensive assistance” to it.
Russia supports the Afghan policy of national
reconciliation and “is ready to be flexible over a potential easing of
the UN Security Council’s sanctions regime against Taliban if it does not
contradict the Afghan national interests,” Kabulov told TASS.
Additionally, Russia is expected to deliver 10,000
AK-47 assault rifles to the Afghan army along with accompanying ammunition in
January 2016. This matter is almost settled, according to Kabulov. Russia is
also holding talks with the Afghan authorities about helicopter shipments.
By late November, Russia had delivered 57 KAMAZ
trucks, worth $2.5 million, to Afghanistan free of charge, Kabulov added.
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