Afghans demonstrate against 'deployment of Russian troops'

KABUL, March 18 (RIA Novosti) - Any return of Russian troops to Afghanistan would be certain to be greeted with open hostility from Afghans. The Soviet Union was involved in a bitter decade-long conflict in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989. A million Afghan civilians and fighters are estimated to have lost their lives during the fighting. Some 15,000 Soviet soldiers also perished, and the return of Russian soldiers to the country would also be extremely unpopular in Russia.