This could be interesting...

Russia says it wants to help US in Afghanistan
By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV, Associated Press
Wed Feb 4, 2009
MOSCOW – President Dmitry Medvedev said Wednesday that Russia and its ex-Soviet allies wanted to cooperate with the United States on stabilizing Afghanistan but he appeared to link any help to changes in Western policy.
[emphasis added]

I'm not sure what to make of this.
The "strings attached" are reported to include "a halt to NATO enlargement in Europe and the cancellation of plans for a U.S. missile-defense system on Russia's western borders".
... and, again, I'm not sure what to make of the strings.
Good or bad?...
Well - I think cancelling the missile-defense system on Russia's western borders is a good idea... but then, I think the whole missile-defense program ought to be trashed.
NATO expansion? Not a clue.

Russian help in Afghanistan?
Not a clue... tho' I'm tempted to accept the offer, if only because what we're doing now seems to be ineffective. (Though the Russians don't have great track-record in Afghanistan, either!!!)

Will we even consider the offer?
Anytime soon?
What do our Afghan allies think? Would we consult 'em?

This could be, er, interesting in the weeks to come.