Moscow to Host Afghan Politicians – Taliban Summit
Russia will host the Taliban and Afghan politicians opposed to President Ashraf Ghani on Tuesday, Russian and Taliban sources said, according to reports.
Russia will host the Taliban and Afghan politicians opposed to President Ashraf Ghani on Tuesday, Russian and Taliban sources said, according to reports.
“Senior Taliban leaders and prominent Afghan politicians will travel to Moscow for a day-long summit. At this sensitive stage, it was best to not have Afghan government officials at the table,” said a Russian official on condition of anonymity. According to Reuters.
Moscow snubbed the Afghan government, sources said, to ensure the participation of the Taliban who refuse to hold talks with Ghani’s representatives to end the 17-year-old Afghan war, branding them puppets of the United States.
“Russia is again trying to muddle the U.S.-backed peace process and the political situation of Afghanistan,” said a senior U.S. official, adding that Russia’s repeated overtures toward the Taliban and Ghani’s critics proved its determination to belittle the government. The source added.
This comes as the Russian President’s special envoy to Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov has recently visited Islamabad on Afghan peace process.
