Moscow
Russia said Friday it backed the Taliban’s integration into a future interim government in Afghanistan, as global powers ramped up efforts to secure a peace deal and end decades of war.
The foreign ministry’s comments come as a May deadline looms for the United States to end its two-decade military involvement in the ravaged country.
Washington has encouraged the Afghan leadership to work towards establishing an “inclusive” government and proposed talks with the Taliban to secure a peace accord.
“The formation of an interim inclusive administration would be a logical solution to the problem of integrating the Taliban into the peaceful political life of Afghanistan,” Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters ahead of talks next week in Moscow.
But she added that the decision should be made “by the Afghans themselves and should be resolved during negotiations on national reconciliation.”— Wion
