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ISAF pullout from Afghanistan heralds failure of US Middle East policies

ZAMYATINA Tamara

The thirteen-year-long presence of US Marines, British military and their allies in Afghanistan has failed to quash resistance put up by the Taliban

MOSCOW, October 29. /TASS/. The thirteen-year-long presence of US Marines, British military and their allies in Afghanistan has failed to quash resistance put up by the Taliban, which looks determined to fight for power to the bitter end after the International Security Assistance Force leaves the country. The coalition’s withdrawal from Afghanistan heralds utter failure of United States policies in the Middle East and South-West Asia, the director of the International Security Centre under the Russian Academy of Sciences, Aleksey Arbatov, told Tass.

Last Sunday the Camp Leatherneck and Camp Bastion bases lowered the state flags of Britain and the United States, and also the flag of NATO. Afghanistan’s three-colour flag was hoisted instead. The Afghan government forces took over both strategic facilities, hitherto subordinate to the United States and NATO. Their US and British personnel will leave for home soon. The exact departure date has not been disclosed for security reasons.

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