Before carrying out the threat he made last week to Nato, Boris Yeltsin should remember Russia's past experiences in both Afghanistan and Chechnya. He should especially recall Chechnya, as he was the one who was responsible for that war.
If these two small countries were able to give Russia and its army a hard time in ground warfare, then what would their fate be if they were to oppose the power of Nato? Russia should concentrate on solving its own problems at home, before it decides to act like the big brother of the evil Slobodan Milosevic and Yugoslavia.
It is obvious that both Mr Yeltsin and Mr Milosevic have no respect for human rights, therefore it comes as no surprise that these two leaders have a rapport.
The people of Russia have gone through a lot in the past century. And, their leaders have given them no direction.
Mr Yeltsin should not expect much from his troops in the Russian Army. He would first have to feed them and pay them their outstanding salaries, before they would be willing to go on to a battlefield.
M. M. DARSOT Durban, South Africa
