Live Desk: Afghanistan Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar on February 26 welcomed Russia’s opposition to the return of the Taliban’s regime. According to ANI, after his meeting with Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, Atmar said that Afghanistan

“strongly support” Russia’s position on the Afghan peace process, particularly the stance that the return of the Taliban regime will not be acceptable. Atmar even went on to say that Afghan also welcomes Russia’s stance on the UN sanctions on the Taliban.

The Afghan FM said, “Durable peace in Afghanistan is possible only within the framework of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The Republic will not allow international terrorism to operate in Afghanistan and this is in the interest of Russia”.

Further, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said that Russia is not in favour of removing the Taliban leader’s names from the UN blacklist without progress in the Afghan peace talks.

In a separate statement, the State Ministry for Peace Affairs Sayed Saadat Mansoor Naderi also called on the Taliban to demonstrate flexibility in the talks and agree on a ceasefire, which is the main demands of Afghans. Naderi said that Afghans want an end to the bloodshed and they want dignified peace.

Dhaka, 01 March (campuslive24.com)//AIT

“The solution lies in the negotiating table, “Naderi added. UK PM reiterates Britain’s support to Afghan

Meanwhile, the MoFA statement comes after the Russian Special Envoy for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov said that Moscow prefers that all parties to the conflict in Afghanistan agree on the establishment of an inclusive and transitional coalition government.

Kabulov had stated that it would be a bad scenario if the Taliban insisted on such an approach. However, he also added Russia believes that it would be good if there was a transitional coalition government in place in which the Taliban had political status.

Kabulov went on to say that the peace talks in Doha have failed, calling for the peace process to proceed in the Moscow format where there is also the presence of the US, Russia, China and Afghanistan’s neighbouring nations. He added that the talks in Doha are only about making contact, not peace negotiations.

It is worth noting that the Afghan Republic and the Taliban negotiators held their meeting on Thursday after over a month-long deadlock in the talks with the main focus on the agenda of the negotiators.

UK PM Boris Johnson has also reiterated Britain’s support for Afghanistan in its fight against the Taliban.

Dhaka, 01 March (campuslive24.com)//AIT