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Soviet experiment

EXACTLY 100 years ago today, representatives from the socialist republics of Russia, Ukraine, Byelorussia (now Belarus) and Transcaucasia (Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia) signed a treaty that set up the Union…

Soviet role in WWII

Rising coronavirus infections forced Russia on May 9, 2020 to curtail its celebrations marking the 75th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany. Russia usually holds grand military parades to…

Soviet memories (Part – V)

In early 1988, when I was back in Moscow from Odessa, Ukraine, Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo visited the Soviet capital. Ajmal Khattak was already there. Both were curious to know…

Soviet memories (Part VI)

As 1989 proceeded, the Soviet Communist Party faced more problems. Gorbachev was pushing it into a direction from where the party knew it would not come out unscathed. In the…

Soviet memories (Part- III )

After Gorbachev assumed power in the Soviet Union in March 1985, it took him nearly a year to consolidate his position and by early 1986 he appeared to be fully…

Soviet memories (Part – IV)

After spending two years in Moscow I moved to Baku, Azerbaijan in 1986, and lived there for a year. From there, I could observe more closely the events taking shape…

Soviet twilight

WHEN the Red Army finally exited Afghanistan in February 1989, crossing the Friendship Bridge into Uzbekistan with somewhat more dignity than witnessed in this year’s American exodus, the last in…

Soviet memories (Part – I)

With the Taliban reentering Kabul triumphantly and the American forces evacuating their embassy staff, political observers have been recalling the withdrawal of Soviet forces from Afghanistan in 1989. Some even…

Soviet memories (Part – II)

When I landed in Moscow as a student in 1984, initially there was a sense of satisfaction at the way the communist system worked. Students were properly taken care of;…

Student unions

UNIVERSITIES in 53 cities all over Pakistan participated in a student march on Nov 19, 2019, and demanded the restoration of student unions and reforms in the higher education sector.…