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Russia needs to understand future steps by new Afghanistan’s leadership, Kremlin says

On August 15, Taliban fighters swept into Kabul without encountering any resistance, and gained full control over the Afghan capital within a few hours

MOSCOW, September 10. /TASS/. Russia does not know how the situation will unfold in Afghanistan with regards to terrorist and drug trafficking threats, so it is important for Moscow to understand what are the further steps of the current Afghan leadership, Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Friday.

"We don’t know how the situation will develop in this respect. This is precisely why we are saying that it is important for us to understand what are the first and the subsequent steps of Afghanistan’s current leadership," the Kremlin official said in response to a corresponding question.

After the Biden administration had announced the end of Washington’s 20-year-long military operation in Afghanistan and the launch of its troop pullout, the Taliban (outlawed in Russia) embarked on an offensive against Afghan government forces.

On August 15, Taliban fighters swept into Kabul without encountering any resistance, and gained full control over the Afghan capital within a few hours. Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani said he had stepped down to prevent any bloodshed and subsequently fled the country. The Taliban declared a complete victory in Afghanistan and formed an interim government.