Russia resolutely opposes escalation of war in Afghanistan

Tuesday, August 03, 1999 9:40 AM EST

MOSCOW, August 3 (Itar-Tass) - Russia resolutely opposes the escalation of combat operations in Afghanistan and denounces the course of the leadership of the Taliban movement for settling the Afghan problem by force, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Vladimir Rakhmanin told a briefing here on Tuesday.

The diplomat noted that very contradictory information comes from Afghanistan on the development of the military and political situation after a large-scale offensive by Taliban fighters, launched a week ago, on the positions of the Northern Alliance.

He said that the main events are developing north of Kabul where Taliban fighters try to seal off the main transport routes of supplies to areas controlled by the Northern Alliance, to surround forces of Ahmad Shah Masood in his key stronghold --the Panjsher Valley -- and try to destroy them there.

The spokesman said that information coming from various sources on stepped-up outside interference in Afghan affairs is of special concern. According to some sources, over 5,000 Pakistani volunteers from religious schools and gunmen from some Islamic fundamentalist organisations arrived from Pakistan at Taliban bases.

It is also reported that over 400 gunmen from some Arab countries participate in combat operations together with Taliban fighters. They are reportedly subordinated to Afghan-based Saudi terrorist Osma bin Laden.

Moscow resolutely opposes the escalation of combat operations in Afghanistan and calls on Islamabad to take immediate measures to prevent the use of its territory for military support of the Taliban movement.

This would be in line with commitments, taken by Pakistan along with other participants in "the 6+2 group" in compliance with the Tashkent Declaration on basic principles of a peaceful settlement of the Afghan conflict, Rakhmanin underlined.