MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif, who is also attending the MCIS, said that Russia could play a leading role in the stabilization of the Middle East and Central Asia, while Western involvement has only exacerbated problems in the regions.
Afghanistan is experiencing political, social and security instability, as the Taliban Islamic movement and other radical extremist organizations, such as Daesh, which is prohibited in many countries including Russia, continue to stage attacks against civilian and state targets.
Formed in the 1990s, the Taliban seeks to enforce Sharia law in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan.
"We see that following the attempt to preserve NATO's meaning in the framework of the Afghanistan operation, it is clear to everyone now that the country has become much more dangerous than it was before the deployment of NATO forces. At this stage, another NATO mmission is being formed," Lavrov told Sweden's Dagens Nyheter.
