KABUL – The inclusion of a small number of Russian antinarcotics agents in a large drug raid has hit a raw nerve among Afghan government officials, prompting President Hamid Karzai to condemn Nato for the raid and demand an investigation.
The seizure of almost $56 million (€40 million) worth of heroin and the discovery of four clandestine drug-producing labs in the eastern province of Nangahar was described by US officials as a major success and a sign of international co-operation in the fight against narcotics. It was the first time Americans and Afghans had teamed with Russians on a military operation.
But senior Afghan officials, apparently unaware of the Russians’ participation, reacted angrily to news reports of the raid.
“Whenever they want to take [the Russians], we should be aware of it,” said the interior minister, Besmillah Khan Mohammady.
Mr Karzai called the operation a violation of sovereignty, saying “no institution has the right to conduct any such military operation inside our territory without the agreement of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan”.
Ties between Moscow and Kabul have strengthened in recent years as Russia seeks to re exert its influence as Nato forces leave.
However memories of the 1980s Russian occupation mean the Russian presence is still controversial.
Afghanistan supplies more than 90 per cent of the world’s opium and Afghan heroin kills more than 30,000 Russians each year.
– (Washington Post)