The Taliban have received improved weaponry in Afghanistan that appears to have been supplied by the Russian government, according to exclusive videos obtained by CNN, adding weight to accusations by Afghan and American officials that Moscow is arming their one-time foe in the war-torn country.
I’m sure our Dear President didn’t know about this when he told Putin what an honor it was to meet him.
These two videos show sniper rifles, Kalashnikov variants and heavy machine guns that weapons experts say are stripped of any means of identifying their origin.
Of course these weapons are only used for killing prairie dogs and for celebrating the New Year.
...adding weight to accusations by Afghan and American officials that Moscow is arming their one-time foe in the war-torn country.
Seems to be working; NYT:
In the latest sign of intensifying Taliban violence across Afghanistan, insurgents overran two districts in the north and the west of the country on Sunday, in one case shooting patients at a hospital and torching government facilities, Afghan officials said.
With the Taliban’s annual offensive in full swing, after the opium harvest and the fasting for the holy month of Ramadan, Afghan forces have been engaged with the Taliban in 21 of the country’s 34 provinces, according to the country’s minister of defense, Gen. Tariq Shah Bahrami. The frequency of attacks across several provinces in recent days and the casualty rate among the security forces, particularly the police and government militiamen, have raised alarms.
The uptick in violence comes as the Trump administration is considering sending a few thousand more troops, adding to the force of about 8,700 Americans already in the country to bolster the Afghan security forces.
Oh, wait, American officials are aware?! I assume they will be fired...we can’t have anyone casting aspersions on that paragon of corruption aggression murder oligarchy espionage interference with U.S. elections virtue, Vlad Putin.
Gen. Joseph Votel, chief of US Central Command, told a congressional committee in March he believed the Russians were seeking influence in Afghanistan."I think it is fair to assume they may be providing some sort of support to (the Taliban) in terms of weapons or other things that may be there," he said.