NEW DELHI: Soviet troops completed their withdrawal from the Afghan capital of Kabul on February 5 according to British Broadcasting Corp.
Ten days before the agreed deadline for the departure of all Soviet soldiers from Afghanistan, the ra~ dio quoted today’s edition of the newspaper Pravada as saying “Prayda’s special correspondents report that on Sunday the last Soviet soldier left Kabul,” the BBC said.
The Soviet Troops sent in December 1979, to help the Marxist government fight Afghan insurgents were to have been removed by Feb. 15 under a U.N. mediated agreement.
The Soviets began their pullout in August and resumed it in January, when convoys of tanks, trucks and armored personnel carriers began up the Salang Highway toward the Soviet border 260 miles. Soviet and Afghan officials said over the weekend there were about 1,000 Soviet soldiers still in Afghanistan and that they could be gone as early as February 8.
The report said that although troops had moved from Kabol, there still were troops in other areas of Afghanistan moving toward the Soviet border. It said troops were moving from the western Afghanistan city of Shindand to the Soviet border city of Kushka,
Meanwhile Soviet President Najibullah has armed 60,000 community party members to fight against the Mujahedeen and declared martial law in the country.
While Soviet foreign minister Shevertnatze extended his visit to Pakistan while his Afghan counterpart Mohammad Harsan Shank made a surprising visit to New Delhi on and Indian Airliner flight. His sudden trip caused concern amongst mutual friends who are seeking to bring about peace in Afghanistan and there is speculation that he might have gone to ask for Indian troops to act as a buffer between his army and mujahedeen freedom fighters. Such a move is not likely to succeed because India is already realizing the price it has had to pay for its misadventure in Sri Lanka.
Article extracted from this publication >> February 10, 1989
