Russian embassy: ‘Russia did not invade Afghanistan and it is not bullying Ukraine’

I HAD just finished writing our response to the article “The Magnitsky effect” by Mr. Antonio Contreras (The Manila Times, Jan. 14, 2020), when another article by the same author, titled “Disrespecting our sovereignty” (The Manila Times, Jan. 30, 2020) landed on my desk. Like in the previous case, Russia is not a focal point of the piece in question. I cannot help, however, but find some of the points made by the author highly inappropriate, which is why I feel compelled to bring it to your attention.

For one thing, I would be very interested to know what Mr. Contreras means by Russia’s “expansionist policy.” Judging by the article, his grasp of history and international relations are diplomatically speaking somewhat unconventional. If he were to consult some history books, or at least Wikipedia, he would learn that the armed conflict that he is referring to saying that “Russia has invaded Afghanistan” is officially called the “Soviet-Afghan War” (1979-1989). Another thing he might have found out is that the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics stopped existing in 1991. The country that took part in that conflict or the political forces that made the decision to start it are no more. So, perhaps it is finally time to stop living in the past.