The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

flag on it. The U.S. ambassador was in it, so nobody had the right to search the vehicle.According to the driver, the ambassador’s bodyguards informed him repeatedly that his carwas being followed.Our security services offered to provide an escort of competent Tsarandoioperatives months ago. Unfortunately, the ambassador did not accept our offer.***Having read Amin’s interview several times, analyst Vladimir Khotyaev set aside thenewspaper, highlighted with a yellow marker, and began to reflect.Amin was not a simple man, he thought. He spoke clearly and confidently, and talkedhis way out of uncomfortable situations. Vladimir pulled out records of conversationsbetween Starostin, Artem, and the Anarchist, as well as reports of the security officerBakhturin and other sources. He placed a notebook with numbered pages in front of him.He wrote the title of a future document on a blank page: “Political Analysis of the MotivesBehind the Death of the American Ambassador Adolph Dubs.” He began to draft his analysisof some of the essential questions:1. Why, if the ambassador had been warned in advance that he was being followed, didhe turn down the offer of a police escort, or not make use of U.S. Marines from theembassy for protection?2. Why did the ambassador obey the transport officer by stopping the vehicle? Was heconfused? Scared? Was it planned that way? Why did he allow the terrorists to enterthe car? Why didn’t he make a scene? Was he threatened by a weapon? Did heexpect this meeting to happen? It’s interesting what the driver had to say. Tsarandoioperatives mentioned to Bakhturin that they had already interrogated the driver.340