Bout acknowledges having been to Afghanistan on numerous occasions during the 1990s , but has denied dealing with al-Qaeda or the Taliban . Beginning in 1994 , Bout made shipments for the pre-Taliban government of Afghanistan which later became the Northern Alliance and knew one of its commanders , Ahmad Shah Massoud , with the CIA described Bout-owned planes as transporters of small arms and ammunition into the country . In 1995 , Bout was involved in negotiations to free Russian hostages during the 1995 Airstan incident
Airstan incident
Airstan incident
Viktor Bout