MOSCOW, September 24. / TASS /. The idea to engage Western countries to the talks on Afghanistan makes sense, since they bear responsibility for the ongoing events and have to provide assistance to the republic, Head of the Foreign Intelligence Service Sergey Naryshkin told RT channel on Friday.
"We will also have to include Western countries in this dialogue. I think that it will make sense. [The West] needs to understand that its actions have resulted in significant losses for Afghanistan. It is their responsibility to provide financial support so that the country can return to normal life," the intelligence service chief noted.
Naryshkin also pointed out that the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense Ministry, as well as the US Department of State, were responsible for the recent developments in Afghanistan. He mentioned that the Americans had left behind destruction, a devastated economy, terrorism and an increase in weapon and drug trafficking.
The Afghan issue
The Taliban (outlawed in Russia) embarked on a large-scale operation to take control of Afghanistan after the US had announced its intention to withdraw its forces in the spring. On August 15, Taliban fighters swept into Kabul without encountering any resistance, with Afghanistan’s then President Ashraf Ghani subsequently fleeing the country. On September 7, the Taliban, which seized power in Afghanistan, announced the new interim government consisting only of the radical movement’s members, mainly the Pashtuns, the republic’s largest ethnic group. Hence, a lot of countries insisted that the new Cabinet was not inclusive, urging the Taliban to include the Afghan ethnic and religious minorities, as well as women, into the government.