ISLAMABAD – The US intelligence alleged that the Russian military offeredbounties to Taliban-linked militants in Afghanistan to murder Americansoldiers and other coalition forces.
According to a report by the New York Times, the US had determined monthsago that Russian military intelligence unit connected with theassassination attempts in Europe had granted rewards for successful attackslast year.
The White House, the CIA, and the Office of the Director of NationalIntelligence refused to comment on the NYT report on the request of Reuters.
The Times said that President Donald Trump has been briefed on theintelligence finding. The White House yet to authorize steps to take action.
According to the newspaper, the Taliban operation was led by a unit knownas the GRU, which has been blamed in numerous international incidentsincluding a 2018 chemical weapons attack in Britain that nearly killedRussian-born double agent Sergei Skripal.
Times said that it was not clear about the 20 Americans killed in whichdeaths were under suspicion.
NYT said that after nearly 20 years of fighting the Taliban, the UnitedStates is looking for a way to extricate itself from Afghanistan and toachieve peace between the U.S.-backed government and the militant group,which controls swaths of the country.