Kremlin on Taliban Invitation to Moscow: We Have to Further Monitor Their Activities

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Speaking on the possibility of inviting a delegation of the Taliban* to Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it is necessary to further monitor their activities and wait for the structure of the Afghan government to be finalised.

"Just like the overwhelming majority of countries, we are closely monitoring what the Taliban are doing in Afghanistan, what the final structure of the government will be like and how promises will be implemented. We are watching all this closely", Peskov said at a briefing, asked whether Moscow plans to invite a Taliban delegation.

Earlier, Afghan Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Zabihullah Mujahid told Sputnik that the Taliban government would like to pay a visit to Moscow. A source in the Russian Foreign Ministry told Sputnik that Moscow and Kabul are negotiating this.

Taliban forces stand guard a day after the U.S. troops withdrawal from Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan August 31, 2021.

© REUTERS / STRINGER

The Taliban took over the country last month amid the ongoing withdrawal of US forces. The militants entered Kabul on 15 August, announcing the end of the war there, while President Ashraf Ghani fled Afghanistan. The last province to resist the Taliban, Panjshir, was seized on 6 September.

A new interim government was formed afterwards, with Mohammad Hasan Akhund, who served as a foreign minister during the first Taliban rule, becoming the head of the cabinet.

*The Taliban is a terrorist organisation banned in Russia and many other nations.