According to a report in the New York Times, Russian intelligence offered to pay Taliban-linked operatives to kill British and American soldiers in Afghanistan.
The Guardian notes that there has recently been a "major escalation" by the Russian regime in its attempts to undermine the US administration and its allies. However, although the Trump administration allegedly knew of the attempts of Russian intelligence agents to disrupt coalition operations in Afghanistan already months ago, nothing has been done about it.
“Russian attempts to undermine Nato efforts in Afghanistan are not new,” said Tom Tugendhat, chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. “We’ve seen incidents in the past but these accusations of encouraging the targeting of British and US forces are a step change and echo the warlike actions of the GRU in Salisbury. We need to recognise that we are in a contest that others are fighting even if we are not.”
Russia has denied the allegations, accusing the New York Times of fake news and claiming that the story has placed the lives of its embassy employees at risk. The Taliban has also denied the story