Let's see, what's happening in Afghanistan. Abdulkader Sinno Associate Professor of Political Science and Middle Eastern Studies at Indiana University gave an exclusive interview to Radio VR: "If Abdullah Abdullah wins the election, the Pashtun are probably going to increase the support of the Taliban because they never did accept a non-Pashtun ruler of Afghanistan in the past and it is unlikely that they will accept one now." At the same time, David Gibbs, Professor of History and Government at the University of Arizona said that the US has reasons to leave Afghanistan, other than feeling its inability to do something in the area. For the US it’s an important assumption that it’s a big power and it doesn’t want to be in a position of losing war, like it lost the war in Vietnam. The article analyzing the present and future of Afghanistan has prompted a lot of comments from our listeners.
For example, Jim Lavin wrote: "What happened when Russia invaded Afghanastan? Was it any better after?"
To which Mihai-Octavian Dima replied:
"I think you should all read a bit WHAT was going on and WHY the USSR felt compelled to invade. - i.e. what the US planted in Afganistan ! ... they destroyed a developing country sending it back to religious fundamentalism, all for the principle of destabilizing Russia's frontiers!"
Isobel Jardine chimed in: "A book called Afghansty by Rodric Braithwaite is very interesting, giving favourable Afghan view of Russia, including people fighting against them. The US made a mistake backing Osama bin Laden against Russia. Russia is a much older country than US, as a developed country. US had history prior to Euro settlement of course. One thing I remember which seemed really positive was after a Red Cross office in Libya, 2012,by an al Qaeda linked group, the Afghanistan Taliban issued a statement saying the Red Cross shouldn't be attacked, they're neutral and help anyone. That was quite surprising, that they bothered to do that."
Ekaterina Blinova noted: "Afghani people said that Russian invasion was better than the American. Russians were much more humane, they built facilities and never tried to rob the Afghani state."
Meanwhile, we have another exclusive interview on the issue – actually, two interviews. Radio VR has asked two experts to give their take on the elections outcome, as well as comment on what can still make it more justified. Michael Kugelman, Senior Program Associate for South and Southeast Asia Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington DC said: "I think what we are looking at here is more of the legitimacy issue than a legal one. I mean the election process has clearly been raised with fraud though it has followed the legally sanctioned, constitutionally mandated process. So, if in the end Ashraf Ghani is declared the winner, even if Abdullah rejects the results, then Ghani will most likely still become a president unless violent outcomes ensue."
