Dmitry Bukhanovski: There will not be “a great war” in Afghanistan

Official accounts of the losses of US land troops in Afghanistan has been opened. General Tommy Francis, while speaking at a briefing in Tampa, State Florida, discussed the losses of US Special Forces. One soldier was killed in a skirmish while trying to establish contact with local people. It could obviously be seen that the communication skills of US army contrast with the visual news from Afghanistan and with the endless flow of bombs and missiles falling on the Taliban. It is clear that with such “distant” contact, civil victims are inevitable, while the contact is not easy because of negative feelings of the population caused by the bombardments. There is also a pragmatic angle to the political and military aspects of the war: for example, protecting the lives of US soldiers at any price in contrast to lives of “barbarous, half savage” people of Afghanistan, over whose heads US F-117 and B-52 are barraging. Though, putting aside all moral aspects, it could be said that US activities are success, while good organization and reasoning of the main operation is obvious, the most important thing is that there is not an escalation of anti-American feelings. Pakistani outskirts were raging for some time and the world's Muslim community was rebelling a little, though financial relations and the injection of money from the richest country have played their part. Now, it is only necessary to avoid the main problem: quiet and assurance that everything is all right, that the enemies are conquered, while Omar and bin Laden will be caught soon. Though, namely, such spirits seem to reign in the US military's leadership. Such a conclusion could be made while regarding relations between Russia and the US. After the September 11 tragedy, some closing has occured: Russian leadership supplies reconnaissance information to US military institutions, carries out rear and moral support, and includes the US in the sphere of its life interests.

Though after the situation in Afghanistan became clear and it was obvious that the war would not be long, the US lost its interest in Russia’s support. The USA's one-sided withdrawal from the ABM treaty was declared. Personal interests of the superpower prevailed, but such a global protection of the country from mass destruction practically provokes a new arms race.

So, taking into a account such position of the US, a crisis in the political and financial field seems to be inevitable.

Dmitry Bukhanovski PRAVDA.Ru

Translated by Vera Solovieva

Read the original in Russian: http://www.pravda.ru/main/2002/01/08/35383.html