<P> Whether the introduction of the personal, portable, infrared - homing surface - to - air "Stinger" missile in September 1986 was a turning point in the war is disputed . Many Western military analysts credit the Stinger with a kill ratio of about 70% and with responsibility for most of the over 350 Soviet or Afghan government aircraft and helicopters downed in the last two years of the war . Some military analysts considered it a "game changer" coined the term "Stinger effect" to describe it . According to US Congressman Charlie Wilson who was instrumental in funding the Stingers for the Mujahideen, before the Stinger the Mujahideen never won a set piece battle with the Soviets but after it was introduced, the Mujahideen never again lost one . </P> <P> However, these statistics are based on Mujahedin self - reporting, which is of unknown reliability . Selig Harrison rejects such figures, quoting a Russian general who claims the United States "greatly exaggerated" Soviet and Afghan aircraft losses during the war . According to Soviet figures, in 1987 - 1988, only 35 aircraft and 63 helicopters were destroyed by all causes . The Pakistan Army fired twenty - eight Stingers at enemy aircraft without a single kill . </P> <P> Many Russian military analysts tend to be dismissive of the impact to the Stinger . According to Alan J. Kuperman, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev decided to withdraw from Afghanistan a year before the mujahideen fired their first Stinger missiles, motivated by U.S. sanctions, not military losses . The stingers did make an impact at first but within a few months flares, beacons, and exhaust baffles were installed to disorient the missiles, along with night operation and terrain - hugging tactics to prevent the rebels from getting a clear shot . By 1988, Kuperman states, the mujahideen had all but stopped firing them . Another source (Jonathan Steele) states that Stingers forced Soviet helicopters and ground attack planes to bomb from higher altitudes with less accuracy, but did not bring down many more aircraft than Chinese heavy machine guns and other less sophisticated antiaircraft weaponry . </P> <P> As early as 1983, Pakistan's Foreign ministry began working with the Soviet Union to provide them an exit from the Afghanistan, initiatives led by Foreign Minister Yaqub Ali Khan and Khurshid Kasuri . Despite an active support for insurgent groups, Pakistanis remained sympathetic to the challenges faced by the Russians in restoring the peace, eventually exploring the idea towards the possibility of setting - up the interim system of government under former monarch Zahir Shah but this was not authorized by President Zia - ul - Haq due to his stance on issue of Durand line . In 1984--85, Foreign Minister Yaqub Ali Khan paid state visits to China, Saudi Arabia, Soviet Union, France, United States and the United Kingdom in order to develop framework for the Geneva Accords which was signed in 1988 between Pakistan and Afghanistan . </P>

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