At his Doshanbeh press conference, Mr. Mas oud expressed satisfaction with his European visit, the first ever since he entered the fight against the Russian occupiers thirty years ago and stressed that the EU pledged political support for the anti-Taleban forces he leads. Though controlling less than ten per cent of the country, yet the ousted government of former president Borhaneddin Rabbani of which Mr. Mas oud is defence Minister is recognised as the official government of Afghanistan, Taleban being recognised by only Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. But at the same time he claimed that Taleban want to resolve the issue through military means. As in his talks with European officials, Mr. Mas oud repeated here that backed by Pakistan military, mercenaries of Osama Ben laden, the Saudi anti-western crusader and thousands of Arabs, the Taleban are preparing a major spring offensive against forces of the Northern Alliance. He also revealed that members of the Uzbek Islamic movement have also joined forces of the Taleban, adding that he has several Pakistani soldiers and officers as well as Arabs and Uzbek fundamentalists in his jails.
Correspondents say profits from opium are widely believed to finance Afghan weapons purchases.