Russia is set to convene a meeting of regional countries on Friday to discuss, among other issues, the expansion of "practical interaction" with Taliban-governed Afghanistan in political, economic, counterterrorism and counternarcotics areas.
Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi will participate as the "chief guest” in what will be the sixth round of the "Moscow Format” of consultations on Afghanistan, reported Maria Zakharova, the Russian foreign ministry spokesperson, on the eve of the gathering.
Russia launched the Moscow Format in 2017, and it has since become a regular platform for discussion of challenges facing impoverished, war-torn Afghanistan.
Zakharova told reporters in the Russian capital on Wednesday that special representatives and senior officials from China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan will attend the gathering.
She said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will preside over the closed-door meeting, and that "the main focus of the discussions” would be advancing the Afghan national reconciliation process.
Zakharova also said, without elaborating, that Lavrov plans to hold bilateral talks separately with Muttaqi and his team on key areas of collaboration between Moscow and Kabul.
Muttaqi’s office in Kabul reported separately that he is scheduled to meet Lavrov on the sidelines of the Moscow Format gathering.
Moscow has established close informal ties with the Taliban since the former insurgents regained control of Afghanistan three years ago, following the withdrawal of U.S.-led coalition troops after almost two decades of war.
Russia, however, has not recognized the Taliban as a legitimate government, in line with international consensus on the issue.
But the Russian foreign and justice ministries submitted a proposal to President Vladimir Putin in June to remove the Taliban from Russia’s list of designated terrorist organizations.
US not attending
Karen Decker, head of the Doha-based U.S. diplomatic mission for Afghanistan, said Thursday that Washington has never attended a Moscow Format meeting because it is seen as a regional conversation.
In an online news conference, she told Afghan journalists that multiple regional formats exist and that any effort to bring Afghans together to discuss the future is worth pursuing.
"But it's not necessary for the United States to participate in all of them. So, we will look for interest in any outcomes and deliverables from the upcoming Moscow Format meeting, but we do not participate," Decker, who recently was also tasked with overseeing Afghan diplomacy for the U.S., said when asked whether Washington would attend Friday's huddle.
Taliban officials confirmed last week that they had formally sought to join the coming Russia-led summit of the BRICS intergovernmental group of major emerging economies. There has been no public response from Moscow.
The Taliban said that Afghanistan is a developing country and needs to attend forums like BRICS to help improve the national economy.
The leaders of the 10-nation BRICS, whose original members were Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, are set to convene October 22-24 in the southwestern Russian city of Kazan.
The U.S. remains opposed to any step toward easing sanctions or moving toward recognition of the Taliban as Afghanistan’s rightful government.
“We have been very clear that we judge the Taliban by what they do, not by what they say,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said last week while responding to the de facto Afghan government’s bid to attend BRICS.
She reiterated that the Taliban would need to improve its human rights record to win international legitimacy and be removed from sanctions lists so they can rejuvenate the Afghan economy.
“Afghanistan cannot strengthen its economy unless women are able to participate in all aspects of society without limitations,” stated Jean-Pierre. “So, we will continue to engage with the Taliban on matters of our interest — for example, on respect for the rights of women and girls and the return of wrongfully detained U.S. citizens — and that's how we're going to move forward with them.”
