BEIJING, September 14. /TASS/. Members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) believe that it is crucial to restore the legitimacy of the authorities in Afghanistan via a peaceful dialogue, SCO Secretary General Vladimir Norov told TASS on Tuesday.

"SCO member states believe that it is crucial to responsibly reinstate the legitimacy of state authorities in Afghanistan through an inclusive, peaceful dialogue with consideration for all public, political, ethnical and religious groups in the country," he said. "They call on all political forces of Afghanistan to take relevant measures to normalize the situation, restore peace, economic development, counter-terrorism, extremism, and drug trafficking," Norov added.

SCO Secretary General also said that "the role and significance of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in normalizing the situation in Afghanistan have significantly increased against the background of the US and its allies pulling out their troops from this country."

"The political situation globally and, in particular, around the countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization continues to remain restive at this stage," he said. "Additionally, a trend is observed towards the escalation of tension in regions adjacent to the SCO’s space where the new hotspots of international instability emerged," he continued.

"In the current conditions of a complete foreign troop pullout from Afghanistan the role and significance of the SCO in the normalization of the situation in this country have significantly increased," the secretary general said.

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.

At the end of August, the US completed both the evacuation of civilians from Kabul and its entire military mission to Afghanistan, ending its longest foreign military campaign.