Moscow calls on the Taliban (banned in Russia) not to use the territory of Afghanistan against third countries, primarily against its Central Asian neighbors, Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday as he opened a meeting on Afghanistan in the Moscow format.
"We call on the Taliban to strictly follow the line of preventing anyone from using the territory of Afghanistan against the interests of third countries, first of all against Afghanistan's immediate neighbors - the countries of Central Asia. Our friends and allies. For our part, we plan to use our capabilities, including through the UN, SCO, CSTO, and other multilateral structures," he said.
The Russian authorities note the efforts of the new Afghan administration to stabilize the military and political situation in the country.
"We take note of the efforts made by them [the Taliban interim government] to stabilize the military and political situation and organize the operation of the government machinery," said the head of the Russian diplomatic mission.
"However, the task of achieving sustainable peace in Afghanistan is still urgent," stressed Lavrov. - "We see the key to its successful resolution primarily in the formation of a truly inclusive government, which should fully reflect the interests of all not only ethnic but also political forces of the country". Such foresight, he pointed out, would teach those who sacrificed national interests to satisfy their personal ambitions and would help ensure the country's progressive, grassroots development.
"The support of the masses is also connected to a competent social policy and the observance of fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens. We talked about this in detail with the Taliban delegation just now, before the opening of our meeting," the minister said.
The minister added that the new balance of forces established in Afghanistan "has no alternatives for the foreseeable future".
"After a fundamental change of the situation on the ground it's useless to blame the country for the failure to reach a tangible result on national reconciliation. The expectations that were placed on the republican camp and the previous government of Afghanistan, headed by former president Ashraf Ghani, have not been met. The new administration is now in power. This fait accompli makes the Taliban movement bear great responsibility," said the head of the foreign ministry.
Interaction with Afghan authorities
Moscow takes a favorable view of the practical cooperation with the new Afghan authorities, due to which it is possible to effectively solve the security problems of Russian citizens on the territory of Afghanistan and to provide for the unobstructed functioning of the Russian embassy in Kabul, Lavrov said.
"We are satisfied with the level of practical cooperation with the Afghan authorities, which allows to effectively solve the priority problems of security of Russian citizens living in Afghanistan and unobstructed functioning of our embassy in Kabul as well as embassies of other states at this stage," said the foreign minister of Russia.
"It was on the platform of the Moscow format in November 2018 that the Taliban movement and republican delegations met for the first time at one table in the presence of representatives of 10 countries. Now, after the cardinal change in the situation on the ground, it is no longer meaningless to look for the blame for the fact that it has never been possible to achieve a tangible result in national reconciliation [in Afghanistan]," he added.
Unstable situation
Lavrov added that Russia-banned terrorist groups Islamic State and al-Qaeda are trying to take advantage of the unstable situation in Afghanistan by launching sorties in different parts of the country.
"This [unstable situation], in turn, is being taken advantage of by numerous terrorist groups. Especially the Islamic State and al-Qaeda, who are once again trying to raise their heads, making bold and bloody sorties in different parts of the country," he said.
The minister said the situation in Afghanistan with the new balance of forces after August 15 is not yet stable. "On the one hand [the new balance of forces in the country] has no alternative for the foreseeable future, on the other hand - the lack of official recognition in the international arena, problems in the socio-economic and financial spheres, humanitarian challenges faced by the new authorities in Kabul," Lavrov noted.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from TASS