“The videos [below and at the CNN link] don’t provide incontrovertible proof of the trade, of which Moscow has categorically denied involvement,” cnn.com reports. “Yet they offer some of the first battlefield evidence of a flow of weapons that has the Afghan and American governments deeply concerned about Moscow’s intentions here.”
That’s one carefully worded non-disclaimer disclaimer. The story is based on an American general’s statement at an April press conference, raising the alarm about possible Russian interference in Afghanistan.
As the caption underneath the video below relates, “With Defense Secretary Jim Mattis at his side, Gen. John Nicholson, the American commander in Afghanistan, wouldn’t provide specifics about Russia’s role in Afghanistan. But said he would ‘not refute’ that Moscow’s involvement includes giving weapons to the Taliban.”
Speaking of refutation, let’s take a closer look at the “evidence” CNN presents for this Russia -> Taliban arms connection:
In one video the Herat group are seen brandishing the guns, which they said were taken from the mainstream Taliban, led by Mullah Haibatullah, after that group attacked them. Eighteen of their rivals were killed in the attack and six were captured, they said.
“These weapons were given to the fighters of Mullah Haibatullah by the Russians via Iran,” said their deputy leader, Mullah Abdul Manan Niazi. He went on to repeat the often-heard rationale behind the arming — which Moscow denies — that the weapons were supplied to help the Taliban better fight ISIS.
“The Russians are giving them these weapons to fight ISIS in Afghanistan, but they are using them against us too,” he said.
The Taliban have Russian weapons? Only since ever. Sourced from wherever. Not to mention the fact that this “evidence” relies on second-hand information. Or the Russian weapons used by our Afghani allies. Or the American and Russian weapons the U.S. gave the Afghanis to fight the Russians, back when their military occupied the country.
The second video was shot nearer Kabul and features a masked Taliban fighter parading arms he says he obtained through the northern province of Kunduz. He said he did not pay for the weapons — insurgents often pay for guns with opium crops — and that his group received the guns via the Tajik border.
“These pistols have been brought to us recently,” he says. “These are made in Russia, and are very good stuff.”
How is “made in Russia” equal to “directly supplied by Russia”? This is, indeed, fake news. As CNN’s own report explains . . .
Weapons experts from the Small Arms Survey studied the videos and said there was little in them to directly tie the guns to the Russian state. The weapons were not particularly modern or rare, and even some of the more elaborate additions, like a JGBG M7 scope on one machine gun, were Chinese made and readily available online, they said.
Without anything like proof, this “Russian arming our enemies” story is without substance or context. I mean, what are the odds that America is arming Russia’s enemies? Again. Still.
The idea — and that’s all it is at the moment — that Russia is giving guns to combatants dedicated to killing U.S. soldiers, against U.S. interests, fits CNN’s ongoing narrative: President Trump secretly cut a deal with the Russians, aiding and abetting our once and future foe, who’s determined to undermine truth, justice and The American Way.
The article’s title: Videos suggest Russian government may be arming Taliban. I suggest CNN should operate according to a basic journalistic principle: treat everyone as a liar, find and report the truth. Simply repeating a rumor to perpetuate an agenda — without adopting a properly skeptical tone — is propaganda. Not news.
CNN……. Nuff said?!
Russians certainly armed the Taliban, mostly with weapons that were only dropped once.
Russians are actively training and arming the Taliban. It’s just not actively reported via open source. BTW: Afghanis are currency; Afghans are people (made up from over thirty different tribes). But I’d bet that JWT already knows this.
And here I thought an Afghan was a pretty crocheted thing you throw over your sofa to dress it up.
I like a lot of what Trump is doing but unfortunately many other Trump supporters want to disregard anything negative about Russia. Russia has been supporting Islamist terrorists for 70+ years for the purpose of destabilization for their benefit (many similarities with communism and Islamic beliefs). In some parts of the Russian army (not Chechnya, not Tajikistan, not Kazakhstan, etc.) up to 30+% are Muslim Russian Federation citizens as soldiers. The Kremlin is not in Syria to fight radicals because Putin is such a good guy, they are there because Russia wants a stable naval port to the Mediterranean. There are many books about this and some are over 50 years old. If you think that communism is dead and that Russia is some sort of freedom and liberty outpost in the east, then read “The Perestroika Deception” and “New Lies for Old.” Both books will send a chill up your spine especially with what is happening today. And please, if you watch RT News, don’t treat every news report as gospel. You certainly won’t if you read those two books.
I’ll agree that Russia is awful and that they are working against our interests. After that, specifics really don’t matter to me except as to how they effect specific policy decisions, i.e., how/if we should counteract their efforts.
“I’ll agree that Russia is awful and that they are working against our interests.”
Russian foreign policy is conducted in furthering Russia’s interests, above all else.
If it happens to be against our interests, it’s a bonus for Russia.
The same pretty much applies to China, and most other countries as well.
Nations don’t have ‘friends’, as much as common interests.
I recall something said by China to America at one point awhile back. “China is not your enemy, or your friend.”
Haha…! True.
It’s also fairly well known that various of the local shops in Kabul, selling bootleg kit and anything that “falls off the back of an ISAF logistics truck”, are visited regularly by guys from the Russian Embassy who buy up anything of interest.
Presumably there’s a legitimate Mil Int value to this (e.g. obtaining real samples of US kit from the field for T&E) but you’ve got to question whether any of that material is also being fenced back to the insurgents… Nicely deniable, when they turn up rocking US Mil issued PVS-14s etc.
The Ruskies are still p!$$ed over the whole Charlie Wilson war when we gave the Mujahideen soldiers stinger missles to shoot down their helicopters and kick their sorry a$$es our of Afghanistan thirty five years ago.
So, yeah. Totally believable. Because there is no way they could possibly get their hands on Russian weapons.
Charlie Wilson. A anti communist, pro gun Democrat. You can’t find a Democrat with either of those positions today.
True enough. But he was still a Democrat.
Every high school Government student should watch that movie. It held to the truth more than any other biographical film I’ve ever seen. Charlie was a womanizing drunk, yet accomplished what many thought was impossible. He is a prime example of how we elect seriously flawed people who often achieve remarkable things.
True enough, and I’ve never been a Democrat. The only Democrats I’ve ever voted for I’ve know personally and known they would be good at the job.
My point was that they at least used to have ones with many reasonable opinions. That’s why people like my dad still vote for Democrats.* They, for some reason (usually indoctrination that has since gone unexamined), still think Democrats are for values that the jackasses have long ago completely abandoned.
*Trump is the first Republican that my dad has ever voted for that I know about.
“Charlie Wilson. A anti communist, pro gun Democrat.”
The Stingers the CIA supplied the Mujahideen were done in a rather intelligent manner, for what it’s worth.
They were given a small handful, and if they wanted another one, the empty launcher tube had to be returned.
Rumors of ‘thousands’ of US made Stingers that could shoot down airliners were bogus.
SA-7s, on the other hand…
(Source – the book ‘Charlie Wilson’s War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times’)
The AK at the top is brought to you by Leapers UTG
Doesn’t Russia arm pretty much everybody?
Just wow. Does CNN have any credibility left?
And this is different than us arming who how? I guess that those people were “freedom fighters” or something.
Tit or tat proxy wars being waged with plausible deniability. Basic SOP for the last 50+ years. There is nothing new under the sun.
* for
They’re arming rag-tag Muj bands? So at least there’s one thing the US and Russia agree on.
If they’re getting it from the Russians, why is all their stuff covered in Israeli and Chinese tacticrap?
Because it’s cheap. The Russians won’t give away near-peer tech. Unlike some….
https://apple.news/AkL3Yz18GN-yOFct9f–I2g
The progtards (CNN) after ONE HUNDRED YEARS of nonstop orgasmic enthrallment with Russia/USSR and Lenin/Stalin/etc NOW are critical? Riiiiiight sure they are. Next you’ll claim the demtard party is not the home of/controlled by marxists. Too funny for words.
its not far fetched at all but as RF said WE armed them ourselves so….
I can totally picture the Russians arming the Taliban as one of many small initiatives to keep the United States off-balance.
I can also totally picture the Russians selling firearms in good faith to some nation which promptly gave/sold them to the Taliban without asking/informing Russia.
A few photos and/or videos at CNN could be anything or nothing.
Of all of the people and news organizations which have been afflicted by CDS, CNN probably has it the worst. What is CDS? “Collusion Delusion Syndrome”. The next thing you know, not only will the Russkies be supplying the Afghans with arms, but Trump, his family, his cohorts in and out of government, , Barron’s nanny, and their pizza deliveryman will be implicated in a vast cabal to not only assist the Russkies in their nefarious deeds but also make billions of dollars (or maybe just rubles) in the process, the ill-gotten gains flown to Switzerland in black helicopters which have special gear to protect them from chainsaw-wielding forest gremlins.
That pic looks a lot like a group of White, Anglo-Saxon, Protestants.
False flag, baby. Teh_Rezistance is watching…..
Mormon “elders” on a mission.
One little tidbit that didn’t escape my notice: they got the weapons from Iran – who received them from Russia…
Somehow I’m reminded of the claim about the number of guns allegedly coming from the US and ending up in Mexico… seems there’s always another detail left out.
Iran has their own agenda–namely to re-establish the Silk Road from Persia to the Mediterranean Sea. Plus, Dari (the most common language in Afghanistan) and Farsi are close enough that they can understand each other (which cannot be said of Modern Standard Arabic and Gulf Arabic). Iran and Russia don’t trust one another, but will use/support common goals against a common enemy (the U.S. backed government in Kabul–aka GIRoA).
Perhaps we should rebrand CNN to PNN = Propaganda News Network.
Although the AK is Russian designed, they are made all over the world in direct and indirect copies. Without checking the details and markings it is very difficult to verify the source. Chinese Type 56 rifles have an enclosed front sight hood but the Russian and other European versions have an open front sight protector. From one of my books at least 30 countries have or had made Kalashnikov type rifles in every modern service caliber and others.
Hmmmm…mebbe I’ll ask my son the spy. HE’ll give a straight answer???
It’s the way the world works. Deal with it.
Pretty ironic, seeing as we armed and funded the mujahideen (who formed the Taliban) in their fight against the Ruskies.
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