KABUL: Top Russian security official Sergei Shoigu visited Afghan government officials on Monday, assuring them Moscow will soon remove the Taliban from its list of banned organisations, Kabul said.

The Russian delegation’s visit coincides with ongoing diplomatic efforts by China and Iran. Special envoys from these nations are currently in Kabul, marking a rare political gathering of representatives from three US rivals since Donald Trump’s recent election victory.

Shoigu, the secretary of Russia’s Security Council, met an Afghan cohort in Kabul headed by Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdul Ghani Baradar.

He “expressed Russia’s interest in increasing the level of bilateral cooperation with Afghanistan,” Baradar’s office said in a statement released on social media site X.

Kabul assured of restoring Afghanistan’s observer status in SCO

“He also announced that, to expand political and economic relations between the two countries, the Islamic Emirate’s name would soon be removed from Russia’s blacklist.”

The Islamic Emirate is the name the Taliban government uses to refer to itself.

Analysts say Moscow may be eying cooperation with Kabul to counter the threat from Islamic State Khorasan (IS-K) — the Afghan-based branch of the militant group.

In March, more than 140 people were killed when IS-K gunmen sieged a Moscow concert hall. Taliban authorities have repeatedly said security is their top domestic priority and have pledged militants staging foreign attacks will be ousted from Afghanistan.

“The Taliban certainly are our allies in the fight against terrorism,” Russia’s ambassador to Afghanistan, Dmitry Zhirnov, said in July. “They are working to eradicate terrorist cells.”

Areas of interest

The visit highlighted potential areas of collaboration, including trade, transit, and investment, according to statements from the Taliban.

The discussions covered a range of topics, including political relations, economic partnerships, and Russian investment in sectors such as mining, transportation, and agriculture. Shoigu also emphasised Russia’s support for the Afghan-Trans project, which seeks to boost Afghanistan’s role in regional connectivity.

Baradar, for his part, highlighted the Taliban’s commitment to banning narcotics cultivation and eliminating security threats in Afghanistan and the region. “We are working to create opportunities for Afghanistan to export to the region and beyond,” Baradar said, emphasising Afghanistan’s desire to play a key role in strengthening the North-South economic corridor.

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

In a separate meeting with Abdul Kabir, the Taliban’s Political Deputy Chief Minister, Shoigu voiced Russia’s intention to restore Afghanistan’s observer status in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) under Taliban leadership. Russian officials, including Special Envoy for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov, also participated in these talks alongside Taliban intelligence director Abdul Haq Wassiq.

China’s Special Envoy Yue Xiaoyong met with Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi earlier this week to express China’s interest in economic cooperation. Russia and China have yet to disclose full details of their meetings, but analysts suggest these engagements reflect a coordinated effort by the three nations to address shared concerns over Afghanistan’s stability and limit US influence in the region.

Published in Dawn, November 26th, 2024