Dmitry Litvinovich: The US recognized the Taliban, though not all of them

Secretary of State Colin Powell is continuing his diplomatic tour of the countries of Southeast Asia. Yesterday, he visited Islamabad and Delhi. At a press conference while finishing his visit, he made a sensational statement: the Taliban’s “moderate” wing could be included in the future coalition government. However, it was not specified who this was meant. America is as unpredictable as it always has been and continues to surprise the whole world. Yesterday, the Taliban were regarded as terrorists; today, pacifists are being searched for among them. The reason of this change is not clear, though there are some assumptions. First of all, 90 percent of Afghan territory are under Taliban control. This fact cannot be neglected. Second, they are influential in Afghanistan and abroad. So while gambling on the Taliban, the US wants, on one hand, to appease the Arabian world, which is unsatisfied with the bombardments, while, on other hand, to knock together the Taliban and the Northern Alliance, where Russia has serious positions. The final purpose? To weaken Russian influence upon this region.

Dmitry Litvinovich PRAVDA.Ru

AP photograph