Russia holds off on recognizing the authority of the Taliban (banned in Russia) in Afghanistan, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters on Tuesday, answering a question from TASS.
"We hold off on recognizing it just like all the other countries," he said.
"Just yesterday I spoke with Foreign Minister Wang Yi of the People's Republic of China. We have the same positions," Lavrov added.
At the same time, the minister pointed out that Russia notes positive signals from the Taliban in terms of the further development of Afghanistan. "We see promising signals from the Taliban, who say they wish to have a government with the participation of other political forces, declare their willingness to continue processes, including those related to education, education for girls and in general the functioning of the state machine, without closing the way for those officials who worked under the previous government of President [Ashraf] Ghani," the Russian foreign minister noted.
According to Lavrov, Russia hopes that the dialogue between the Taliban and the leaders of Afghanistan's political forces will culminate in the formation of inclusive transitional structures of the country's government.
"Literally in these days, as I understand, maybe even in these hours, there is a conversation with a representative of the Taliban. I very much hope that it will end with an agreement for the Afghans to form inclusive, as they say, transitional structures as an important step toward a complete normalization of the situation in this long-suffering country," the minister said, answering a question to TASS.
"We support the start of an inclusive national dialogue involving all political and ethno-confessional forces in Afghanistan," Lavrov added.
The Russian foreign minister also noted the positive processes in the streets of Kabul, where, according to him, "the situation is quite calm and the Taliban generally effectively enforce law and order."
The fighters of the Taliban movement entered Kabul on August 15 without any fight and established full control over the Afghan capital within several hours. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said he resigned to avoid bloodshed and left the country. Western countries evacuate their citizens and embassy personnel.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Creative Commons
Based on materials from TASS