Last year, the Voice of Islam wrote about the Russian government’s plans to officially reevaluate the assessment of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Yesterday, they came one step closer to its implementation. In particular, the draft statement was approved by the Defense Committee of the State Duma. In it, the decision of the Congress of People’s Deputies of the USSR of 1989, which condemned the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan, will be called unjust. The State Duma plans to adopt it on February 15, symbolically avenging the corresponding decision taken 30 years ago during perestroika on February 14.
But before discussing the possible geopolitical aspects of this declaration, a few words about Russian domestic politics. More precisely, about the hypocrisy of its main actors, from those in power to the so-called opposition.
For example, it is not surprising that this decision is being actively promoted by the «Afghan» General Vladimir Shamanov, whose actions in Chechnya earned him the reputation of a punisher and executioner of the Chechen people. All these «Shamanovs,» morally and politically crushed by perestroika and the collapse of the Evil Empire, regained their spirits after Yeltsin and his successors unleashed them in Chechnya, where they were given carte blanche to once again indulge in bloodshed. Crimea, Donbass, Syria, and new bloody adventures that may follow are the result, and Russian society should understand this well.
But what really surprises those who still have a shred of naive faith in common sense in Russia is the figure of the initial initiator of this statement — Nikolai Kharitonov, a State Duma deputy from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF). As we can see, instead of mobilizing people to protest against the raising of the retirement age, the increase of taxes and fees, the uncouth attitude of officials towards the people, etc., this «party of the working class» is engaged in what? Justifying the Soviet aggression in Afghanistan, which resulted in over a million peaceful Afghan civilians killed, millions wounded, disabled, orphaned, villages burned, and a country that still cannot find itself. But what is equally interesting is that Kharitonov is a former leader of the Agrarian Party of Russia, which, in those years when there was still real politics in the country, defended the interests of the peasantry, especially in the non-black soil regions. And what does he do now? He becomes the initiator of the justification of a war that has led to the burial of thousands of people, mainly Russian peasants, who were torn from their families and villages to fight for completely alien goals. This is all you need to know about the parliamentary opposition in modern Russia, including the fraudulent Communist Party of the Russian Federation and «defenders of the peasantry» like Kharitonov.
And now to the global situation. Not long ago we wrote about the completely absurd misinformation spread by the quasi-elite Nezygar channel about the explosions in Magnitogorsk. However, this channel did not stop at accusing «Shiite members of the Party of Islamic Renaissance of Tajikistan» of this terrorist act. From its further publications it became clear why this was done: «…our sources in the security forces predict: everything could begin after the formation of about 50 assault battalions of Sunni persuasion, which will move toward Central Asia simultaneously with 20 battalions of Shiites. Two armies, each with its own tasks and its own ultimate goals. And strange as it may seem to some, the Sunni-Shiite convergence in Afghanistan is already happening. Russian military intelligence and other Russian special services have been reporting this threat from Afghanistan to the Russian leadership (and not just to them) for several years. The Russian Ministry of Defense has repeatedly stated that ISIS is gradually «flowing» into Afghanistan, gaining strength there and adapting to «local peculiarities. In this connection, our sources in the military department report on ongoing military preparations in the event of such an offensive. And the flights of Russian strategic aviation to bomb ISIS targets in Syria, as well as the testing of the latest Russian weapons there, are not only a demonstration of Russia’s military capabilities for the sake of deterring major potential enemies or satisfying the export demand for Russian weapons, although they also serve that purpose.
In addition to all this, what is happening in Syria is also a kind of «rehearsal» for Russian actions at distances much closer to our borders, since the real military capabilities of our neighbors in Central Asia will not be able to ensure their resistance to serious threats. And allowing this ISIS horde to approach our borders would mean putting a knife to our throat, not only in military terms, but also in terms of an even easier spread of radical Islamist ideas on our territory, with all the resulting consequences, including terrorist attacks in the most unexpected places and settlements…».
So, at least some Russian military intelligence circles are seriously considering the possibility of a new military campaign, now in Afghanistan. The real or fake but very strange terrorist attack in Magnitogorsk, and what is happening in the media sphere around it, could very well be related to these plans. In the end, the security forces may decide to abandon their initial version of a gas explosion and announce that the peaceful residents of a Russian city were bombed by Shia-Sunni ISIS-Taliban terrorists, whose trail leads to Afghanistan, this «terrorist haven». By that time, the State Duma may have made a decision to the effect that the military intervention in Afghanistan was indeed right, but the withdrawal, as will follow from the conclusion about the terrorist act with Afghan connections, was a mistake.
Therefore, dear Russian conscripts and their families, prepare yourselves for the fulfillment of a new international duty… with corresponding consequences. Afghanistan is not Syria — it cannot be solved with a few air strikes and the use of private military contractors (PMC).