WASHINGTON, Nov 29: The United States was apparently taken by surprise by the sudden arrival of Russian troops in Kabul earlier this week.

The Russians arrived at the Bagram base, 35 miles north of Kabul, ostensibly to aid rehabilitation efforts and provide humanitarian assistance. But the arriving units are from the Russian ministry of emergency situations, which used to be an agency of the defence ministry and which has 70,000 troops of its own.

The Washington Post reported on Thursday the US was sufficiently alarmed by the landing of the Russian detachment to make Secretary of State Colin Powell telephone Russia’s foreign minister and urge Moscow to avoid abrupt diplomatic or military moves.

The Russians have backed, armed and worked closely with the Northern Alliance, and Washington is concerned that the presence of the Russian troops may be meant to influence the formation of a new government and the future security structure in Afghanistan. Crucial talks to finalize a post-Taliban setup are currently in progress in Bonn.

President Vladimir Putin said Moscow sent in the detachment at the request of the Islamic State of Afghanistan, the title used by the Burhanuddin group, which continued to be recognized at the UN as the legitimate government of Afghanistan, as opposed to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the nomenclature that was favoured by the Taliban regime.