Vitaly Smirnov Explained

Vitaly Stepanovich Smirnov (Russian: Виталий Степанович Смирнов, 16 February 1930 – 1 November 2007) was a Soviet diplomat. He served as the Soviet ambassador to Pakistan during the 1980s. His tenure was characterised by several notable events in Pakistan–USSR relations, including the Soviet–Afghan War and the Badaber Uprising in Peshawar in 1985.^[1] ^[2] ^[3] ^[4] ^[5] ^[6] Earlier, he was the Permanent Representative of Belarus to the United Nations (1967–1974).

Notes and References

Виноградов B. "Афганистан: 10 лет глазами СМИ". RSVA.com
Book: Tabassum. Firdous. Central Asia, Security, and Strategic Imperatives. 2002. G. Publishing House. 9788178350790. 161. Moreover, on May 19, Vitaly Smirnov, then Soviet Ambassador to Pakistan, publicly confirmed Kabul's "willingness to give a timetable for the withdrawal of the total Soviet contingent"..
News: BLAST IN PAKISTAN HAS OFFICIALS JITTERY. New York Times. 16 May 1985. 8 December 2014. Soviet and Afghan soldiers fought together heroically, and in the final moment blew up the stockpile and themselves, said the Soviet Ambassador of Pakistan, Vitaly S. Smirnov, who protested the episode in Islamabad...This incident shows the increasing involvement of Pakistan in an undeclared war against Afghanistan, Mr. Smirnov said...Pakistan officials say the attacks are increasing as part of a Soviet campaign of intimidation...And so the Government, although not denying Ambassador Smirnov's assertion about the explosion, has refused to confirm it and probably never will..
News: AROUND THE WORLD; French Politician Visits Camp of Afghan Rebels. New York Times. 6 January 1985. 8 December 2014. Last October the Soviet Ambassador to Pakistan, Vitaly Smirnov, said that journalists or others who made secret visits to report on the Afghan situation would be killed..
News: Pakistan scoffs at Soviet war talk. Sydney Morning Herald. 23 December 1983. 8 December 2014. The ambassador, Mr. Vitaly Smirnov, told the right-wing Nawa-i-Waqt, that Pakistan was waging an "undeclared war" against Soviet-occupied Afghanistan which would invite direct military intervention from the Soviet Union and its satellites..
Book: Smith. Jakes. Dinner with Mobutu: A Chronicle of My Life and Times. 2005. Xlibris Corporation. 9781413499438. 142. The Soviet ambassador to Pakistan, Vitaly Smirnov, issued the following warning to Western journalists: "Stop trying to penetrate Afghanistan with so-called guerrillas. From now on, the bandits and the so-called journalists accompanying them will be killed..