MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th April, 2023) A delegation of the Russian Foundation for Islamic Culture, Sciences and education has received assurances from a senior Taliban (under UN sanctions for extremism) official that the movement will not let Afghan territory to be used against Russia, a member of the delegation, Magomedbashir Albogachiev, told Sputnik.
"On Sunday, our delegation in Kabul held a meeting with Maulavi Abdul Kabir, Afghanistan's deputy prime minister for political affairs. He asked us to tell the Russian leadership that the Taliban movement will not let use its territory against Russia or the countries of Central Asia," Albogachiev said.
According to Albogachiev, the Afghan deputy prime minister said that Afghanistan was "extremely interested" in building comprehensive trade and economic ties with Russia, which is an issue currently complicated by the absence of a clear logistical route.
Earlier in the week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov took part in the fourth meeting of the foreign ministers of Afghanistan's neighboring countries in the Uzbek city of Samarkand, with the officials discussing the situation in Afghanistan and ways to develop a common regional approach to improving it. Lavrov said at a press conference after the meeting that practically all of the participating countries agreed on the necessity to maintain and develop contacts with the Taliban movement.
