Russia believes it is impossible to discuss the Afghan settlement without the participation of the country’s authorities and calls on the West to lift unilateral sanctions against Kabul. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated at the opening of the 6th meeting of the Moscow format of consultations on Afghanistan, Interfax reports.
Acting Foreign Minister in the Taliban government Amir Khan Muttaqi arrived at the event.
Sergei Lavrov noted that Moscow «is convinced of the need to maintain a pragmatic dialogue with the current government of Afghanistan.»
Constructive interaction with Afghan partners meets the interests of security and economic development of the region and the goals of intra-Afghan national accord.
Sergei Lavrov
According to him, the actions of Western countries «lead to a dead end» in the situation around Afghanistan.
The head of the Foreign Ministry called on the United States and its allies to lift unilateral restrictions on the country’s banking sector and return Kabul’s frozen assets. «Given the ongoing discussions in the West, we do not accept the return of military infrastructure of third countries to Afghanistan and the deployment of new military facilities in neighboring countries under any pretext,» he said.
Sergei Lavrov noted that the Afghan authorities are making «significant efforts» in the fight against drugs.
According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, in 2023, the area under opium poppy cultivation decreased by 95 percent, and the volume of drug production fell by almost 20 times.
«We support the active commitment of the Afghan authorities to curbing the terrorist threat. It is especially valuable that, while in a difficult economic situation, the country’s authorities are effectively confronting the same Islamic State, whose units organize raids on the territory of Afghanistan,» the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry added.
- A similar format of meetings has existed since April 2017. The Moscow format unites 10 states interested in the Afghan settlement: Russia, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
