Mullah Omar gets a Russian visitor

He can be disarmingly charming. Like any ethnic Uzbek. Plus he has cultivated a great sense of humor, especially the sardonic variety that is a Russian trademark, which sees you through adversities. He was trained in the tricks of his trade at the best professional schools in Moscow. 

A consummate Orientalist - that is what he has been, coming in the long distinctive tradition of Russian diplomacy that places an overriding accent on area specialists. That is probably the best way to describe Zamir Nabiyevich Kabulov, appointed on Tuesday to the new Russian post of presidential special representative for Afghanistan, includes on his impressive resume the ambassadorship in Kabul. But then, Kabulov also has the rare distinction of having met Taliban leader Mullah Omar face-to-face. Read the full article in today's Asia Times...