Russia strongly condemns the indiscriminate use of force by American military in Afghanistan. This was stated by Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman of the Russian Foreign Ministry at a briefing on Thursday.
‘The final chord of the international coalition’s military presence is yet another civilian death caused by a US drone strike that led to the collapse of a residential building and death of nine people, including six children. We strongly condemn such indiscriminate use of force’, she said.
Zakharova also called the completed US and NATO mission in Afghanistan a failure and a disaster. ‘The issues of terrorism, drug traffic and low living standards of the local population, in fact, not only have failed to be solved, but many of them have been exacerbated’, the diplomat noted.
According to her, Russia sees the signals from Taliban (banned in the Russian Federation) that they are ready to develop ties with the international community. ‘We note the statement by senior Taliban functionary Shahabuddin Delawar. He called on foreign countries that have hastily curtailed their diplomatic missions to resume their work. This signal demonstrates the Taliban leadership’s willingness to develop ties with the international community’, she said.
Zakharova also noted that the Russian embassy in Kabul continues to work as usual. ‘The security situation of the staff and the complex of buildings is under control at this stage’, the diplomat added.
On August 29, a US drone struck a car bomb in Kabul intended to be used by militants of the Islamic State in Khorasan, an offshoot of the Islamic State extremist organization. The attack destroyed two vehicles and partially a residential building.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Press Service of the Russian Foreign Ministry / TASS
Based on materials from TASS