Russia rebukes US allegation it 'may be' supplying Taliban

Russia has dismissed a US claim that it may be supplying Taliban insurgents as a "lie", stating that the accusation marks an attempt by Washington to mask the failure of its own policies in Afghanistan, RIA Novosti reported on Friday.

The Russian-state affiliated news agency attributed the statement to the country's Foreign Ministry.

On Thursday General Curtis Scaparotti, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander and also the head of the US military's European Command said that Russian influence in Afghanistan was expanding.

"I have seen the influence of Russia of late – an increased influence – in terms of association and perhaps even supply to the Taliban," Scaparrotti told the Senate Armed Services Committee without elaborating further.

NATO troops have been present in Afghanistan since a US-led invasion in 2001 following the September 11 attacks in New York. They have regularly battled with Taliban insurgents.

Around 13,000 NATO troops remain in the country, the majority American.

Scaparotti's comments follow on from remarks made last month by General John Nicholson, the US commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan.  

Also speaking to the Senate Armed Services Committee Nicholson said that Russia was providing encouragement and diplomatic cover to the Taliban in order to undermine American influence in the country, and disrupt peace keeping efforts made by NATO in the country.

However, Nicholson did not say whether Moscow was supplying the insurgent group.

In the 1980's the US supplied the Mujahideen, elements of which later became the Taliban, with high-tech weapons as they battled against the Soviet Union. US military assistance was seen as playing a key role in the withdrawal of Soviet forces from the country.

After more than 15 years of NATO presence in Afghanistan US generals say that the conflict is stuck in a "stalemate" with the Taliban continuing to carry broad influence across many regions of the country.

On Thursday Taliban fighters captured Sangin in southern Afghanistan's troubled Helmand province after a year-long offensive, with spikes of violence also reported in other areas of the country in recent weeks.

The increased insecurity in the country has led Afghanistan's government to call for more US troops to boost defences against the Taliban.