Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, speaking on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum, launched a harsh critique of the NATO military alliance, stating that its mission in Afghanistan ended in failure, defeat, and disgrace, ultimately forcing Western forces to withdraw from the country.
Kabul 24: The Russian Foreign Minister emphasized that following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, NATO should have been disbanded like the Warsaw Pact. Instead, he argued, the alliance continuously sought fresh pretexts to justify its ongoing existence.
Lavrov asserted that the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York provided NATO with an opportunity to use its involvement in Afghanistan to redefine and sustain its military operations—a venture that ultimately concluded with a hasty retreat.
Lavrov stated: “NATO is seeking a reason to justify its existence. Following the terrorist attacks in New York on September 11, 2001, Afghanistan became a pretext for this. Later, NATO’s mission in Afghanistan ended in failure and disgrace. Once this chapter concluded in defeat and they fled, they replaced the Soviet threat with the Russian threat.”
Political analysts also point to Western strategies as the primary cause of local resistance. Najibullah Bahadur, a political analyst, noted that NATO’s flawed overall policies ultimately led the Afghan people to rise up against its military presence.
The military presence of the United States and NATOProfiteering in the Shadow of Conflict: Senator Warren Accuses Trump and Oil Giants of Exploiting Iran Tensions in Afghanistan began in October 2001 and lasted nearly two decades. With the departure of the final American troops on August 31, 2021, the longest war in U.S. history came to an end. Officials from the Islamic Emirate had previously noted that the conclusion of the foreign troop presence demonstrated once again that Afghanistan remains an “unconquerable” nation.
