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| Russians Seek Fate of Missing in Afghan War | |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| KABUL, Afghanistan — More than 23 years after the hurried Soviet military withdrawal from Afghanistan, Russians are still trying to solve haunting mysteries they left behind: the fate of 265 former soldiers still missing in action, some of them thought to have taken up quiet Afghan lives. | KABUL, Afghanistan — More than 23 years after the hurried Soviet military withdrawal from Afghanistan, Russians are still trying to solve haunting mysteries they left behind: the fate of 265 former soldiers still missing in action, some of them thought to have taken up quiet Afghan lives. |
| It is rare that the Russian Embassy here opens its high gates to outsiders. But last week, foreign and Afghan reporters were invited in to talk with Alexander Lavrentyev, the vice president of the Moscow-based War Veterans Committee, who made a soft-spoken but passionate plea for help in locating the service members from the former Soviet Union who have still not been accounted for. | It is rare that the Russian Embassy here opens its high gates to outsiders. But last week, foreign and Afghan reporters were invited in to talk with Alexander Lavrentyev, the vice president of the Moscow-based War Veterans Committee, who made a soft-spoken but passionate plea for help in locating the service members from the former Soviet Union who have still not been accounted for. |
| “I am confident some are still alive, and the problem is that they are afraid to contact us,” Mr. Lavrentyev said. | “I am confident some are still alive, and the problem is that they are afraid to contact us,” Mr. Lavrentyev said. |
| Many of those who survive may not know that Russia and most of the other states that made up the Soviet Union have passed amnesty laws that ensure that even if the soldiers deserted or decided to remain in Afghanistan, they will not be prosecuted. They may also be unaware that if they come home they will be able to receive medical care, he said. | Many of those who survive may not know that Russia and most of the other states that made up the Soviet Union have passed amnesty laws that ensure that even if the soldiers deserted or decided to remain in Afghanistan, they will not be prosecuted. They may also be unaware that if they come home they will be able to receive medical care, he said. |
| About 15,000 Soviet men and a few women died in the 1979-1989 fighting in Afghanistan, the vast majority of them soldiers. | About 15,000 Soviet men and a few women died in the 1979-1989 fighting in Afghanistan, the vast majority of them soldiers. |
| Some were killed in battle, some were taken as prisoners of war, and many died of cold and disease. A few, however, ultimately decided to convert to Islam, marry Afghan women and make their lives here. Some went to Pakistan and others ultimately fled to Europe or South Africa, according to books on the period. | Some were killed in battle, some were taken as prisoners of war, and many died of cold and disease. A few, however, ultimately decided to convert to Islam, marry Afghan women and make their lives here. Some went to Pakistan and others ultimately fled to Europe or South Africa, according to books on the period. |
| Mr. Lavrentyev’s main goal is to help the families of those whose fate remains unknown (roughly half are Russian and the others are from former Soviet republics). | Mr. Lavrentyev’s main goal is to help the families of those whose fate remains unknown (roughly half are Russian and the others are from former Soviet republics). |
| “Their loved ones are still waiting for them. So this conference is to ask people to help us,” he said, appealing especially to Afghan journalists who, he said, talk to many more people than his committee can. He hoped that they would be able to go to areas that are again conflict zones, but where Soviet soldiers may be buried in unmarked graves. | “Their loved ones are still waiting for them. So this conference is to ask people to help us,” he said, appealing especially to Afghan journalists who, he said, talk to many more people than his committee can. He hoped that they would be able to go to areas that are again conflict zones, but where Soviet soldiers may be buried in unmarked graves. |
| “Sometimes people ask, ‘why are you working on this issue and reopening old wounds?’ And I always have the same answer: I recommend to everyone that they go to the mother who has lost her son and she will tell you his story,” he said. | “Sometimes people ask, ‘why are you working on this issue and reopening old wounds?’ And I always have the same answer: I recommend to everyone that they go to the mother who has lost her son and she will tell you his story,” he said. |
| For such families, the stories have awaited final chapters for decades: is our son, our brother, dead? Or is there a chance he has adopted a new life? | For such families, the stories have awaited final chapters for decades: is our son, our brother, dead? Or is there a chance he has adopted a new life? |
| “What is it they say: the war isn’t over until the last soldier comes home?” said Lt. Col. Dmitry Priymachuk, the Russian Embassy’s assistant military attaché, as he showed in a visitor. | “What is it they say: the war isn’t over until the last soldier comes home?” said Lt. Col. Dmitry Priymachuk, the Russian Embassy’s assistant military attaché, as he showed in a visitor. |
| Similar questions have driven a long campaign within the United States to find the dead and missing from the Vietnam era. That the Russian Embassy opened its doors to reporters was a measure of the importance that the missing in Afghanistan still hold for former Soviet republics that are still wrestling with the Afghan war’s legacy. | Similar questions have driven a long campaign within the United States to find the dead and missing from the Vietnam era. That the Russian Embassy opened its doors to reporters was a measure of the importance that the missing in Afghanistan still hold for former Soviet republics that are still wrestling with the Afghan war’s legacy. |
| Several Afghan journalists snapped pictures or recorded video as they walked through the lush rose garden and into the dignified marble reception room of a compound that is usually off limits. The embassy, one of the larger diplomatic installations in Kabul, has been there for many years, but was evacuated in 1992, after it came under fire during an intensified Afghan civil war. It was officially reopened in 2007, as the Russians cautiously began forging a new relationship with Afghanistan. | Several Afghan journalists snapped pictures or recorded video as they walked through the lush rose garden and into the dignified marble reception room of a compound that is usually off limits. The embassy, one of the larger diplomatic installations in Kabul, has been there for many years, but was evacuated in 1992, after it came under fire during an intensified Afghan civil war. It was officially reopened in 2007, as the Russians cautiously began forging a new relationship with Afghanistan. |
| The present ambassador, Andrey Avetisyan, is a longtime Afghan hand; he was here in the early 1980s, and again when the embassy was evacuated in the ’90s. Fluent in Pashto and Dari as well as English, he co-hosted the news conference, taking questions in Dari. | The present ambassador, Andrey Avetisyan, is a longtime Afghan hand; he was here in the early 1980s, and again when the embassy was evacuated in the ’90s. Fluent in Pashto and Dari as well as English, he co-hosted the news conference, taking questions in Dari. |
| Mr. Lavrentyev emphasized the importance of acting now because those who remember the war are dying. In Afghanistan, life expectancy for men is barely 50 years. | Mr. Lavrentyev emphasized the importance of acting now because those who remember the war are dying. In Afghanistan, life expectancy for men is barely 50 years. |
| Mr. Lavrentyev said that of the nearly 300 Soviet soldiers missing at the time of the withdrawal, 29 have been found. Twenty-two of them returned to Russia; the other seven chose to remain in Afghanistan. The committee has also exhumed 15 remains, and five of them have been identified: three Russians and two Kazakhs. Extensive DNA testing and matching is being done on the remains of the other 10 to determine their identity. | Mr. Lavrentyev said that of the nearly 300 Soviet soldiers missing at the time of the withdrawal, 29 have been found. Twenty-two of them returned to Russia; the other seven chose to remain in Afghanistan. The committee has also exhumed 15 remains, and five of them have been identified: three Russians and two Kazakhs. Extensive DNA testing and matching is being done on the remains of the other 10 to determine their identity. |
| The remains of three were buried this year: Sergey Kolesov of St. Petersburg, and Alexey Zyev and Abdulhakim Ezgeshov of Kazakhstan. Mr. Ezgeshov, a Muslim, was buried with the proper Islamic rites, Mr. Lavrentyev said. He seemed to want to emphasize to the mostly Afghan audience that whatever Afghans might believe about Russians, they respected Islam and wanted to do right by all their soldiers regardless of their background. | The remains of three were buried this year: Sergey Kolesov of St. Petersburg, and Alexey Zyev and Abdulhakim Ezgeshov of Kazakhstan. Mr. Ezgeshov, a Muslim, was buried with the proper Islamic rites, Mr. Lavrentyev said. He seemed to want to emphasize to the mostly Afghan audience that whatever Afghans might believe about Russians, they respected Islam and wanted to do right by all their soldiers regardless of their background. |
| A number of Soviet soldiers in Afghanistan were Muslims, often from republics on Afghanistan’s borders. For them the war was particularly emotionally fraught, as they were compelled to fight Afghan Muslims who believed they were engaged in a holy war. | A number of Soviet soldiers in Afghanistan were Muslims, often from republics on Afghanistan’s borders. For them the war was particularly emotionally fraught, as they were compelled to fight Afghan Muslims who believed they were engaged in a holy war. |
| Some defectors came from such backgrounds, but a number of those who ended up staying in Afghanistan were ethnic Russians, many of whom felt compelled to convert to Islam. | Some defectors came from such backgrounds, but a number of those who ended up staying in Afghanistan were ethnic Russians, many of whom felt compelled to convert to Islam. |
| Among the most famous was a man known as Islamuddin, who converted and married an Afghan and became a bodyguard to Ahmed Shah Massoud, the Tajik commander who was a fierce opponent of the Taliban. Islamuddin has returned to Russia with his wife, who is being treated in a Russian hospital, and family, said Mr. Lavrentyev, who said Islamuddin had helped him locate potential areas of excavation in Panjshir and Parwan Provinces, where Massoud was active. | Among the most famous was a man known as Islamuddin, who converted and married an Afghan and became a bodyguard to Ahmed Shah Massoud, the Tajik commander who was a fierce opponent of the Taliban. Islamuddin has returned to Russia with his wife, who is being treated in a Russian hospital, and family, said Mr. Lavrentyev, who said Islamuddin had helped him locate potential areas of excavation in Panjshir and Parwan Provinces, where Massoud was active. |
| Mr. Lavrentyev estimates there are 30 to 40 others who stayed and are still living somewhere in Afghanistan or Pakistan. | Mr. Lavrentyev estimates there are 30 to 40 others who stayed and are still living somewhere in Afghanistan or Pakistan. |
Jawad Sukhanyar contributed reporting. | Jawad Sukhanyar contributed reporting. |