Lavrov: Russia supports the formation of a representative power structure in Afghanistan – Politics
UN, 25 September. / TASS /. Moscow will continue to urge the representatives of the Taliban movement (banned in Russia) who have come to power in Afghanistan to behave in a civilized manner. This was stated on Saturday by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a press conference following his visit to New York for the 76th session of the UN General Assembly.
“We will encourage those who have now taken power in Kabul after the flight of foreign contingents to behave in a civilized manner,” he said.
According to the minister, comparing the Taliban with other terrorist groups, one cannot divide them into good and bad, but the sanctions against the Taliban have been imposed with a large number of exemptions. “First of all, this was done in order to be able to conduct a dialogue with them, which means that the UN Security Council recognizes the Taliban as an integral part of Afghan society, which for Syria is not Jebhat al-Nusra and Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham ( This is where the difference is forbidden, “- Prize Lavrov.
Formation of government
Russia, in contact with the Taliban, continues to discuss the formation of a representative government in Afghanistan, Lavrov said.
“The first step that was taken [талибами], with the formation of a transitional government structure, of course, does not reflect the entire palette of Afghan society in terms of ethno-confessional, political <...>… Quite recently, our representatives, I mean Russian, Chinese and Pakistani, were in Doha, then used Kabul, where they communicated with both the Taliban and a representative of the secular government. <...>… The conversation went primarily on the need to form a government structure that would be truly representative, “he said.
Lavrov pointed out that the hasty withdrawal of US forces and other NATO countries from Afghanistan “was carried out without any understanding of the consequences.” “The consequences, as you know, are that there are a lot of weapons left in Afghanistan.
The head of the Russian Foreign Ministry, a priority in the extremist situation in Afghanistan, is to prevent the spread of extremism to neighboring countries and terrorist threats in Afghanistan. “The resolve of the Taliban, which they declared, the determination to fight IS [“Исламское государство”, запрещено в РФ] – added Lavrov.
Agreman for the new ambassador
The new Afghan authorities have not yet turned to the Russian side for an agreman of the new state. In case of such an appeal, Moscow will be guided by the principle of the international Taliban movement, which is currently prohibited in Russia, Lavrov’s statement.
We will proceed exactly from this principle if and when we receive a request to appoint a new ambassador. “
The authorities of the Russian diplomatic service drew attention to the fact that now “an ambassador, who was appointed by the previous government, is working in Moscow.”
Removal of sanctions
The Security Council did not discuss the issue of lifting or easing sanctions against the Taliban, Lavrov said.
“I have not heard that in the Security Council, someone raised the issue of the need at one of the upcoming meetings to talk about softening or lifting the challenge of sanctions.” [в отношении талибов]”, – said Lavrov.
The head of the diplomatic service added that restrictive measures do not interfere with contacts between the Russian Federation and the Taliban.